Falling Through Grace
by BrenRenQoI
Summary: The SGC receives unexpected visitors. AU fic. Assumes general knowledge of season eight.
1. Chapter 1

**Falling Through Grace **

by Bren Ren

Category: Romance/Alternate Universe

Summary: The SGC receives very unexpected visitors from a parallel dimension

Disclaimer: Not mine. I'm just playing with them again. I promise to return them in their fully upright positions.

* * *

Chapter One

Saving Grace

The temple was quiet and empty. Thick dust had settled on the relics of a long dead civilization. The air, however, still held the choking stench of battle, of death, of smoke, of charred flesh. From one corner, the walls began to hum, then shimmer. A woman materialized into the thick air, holding the hand of a small child.

The woman looked around cautiously, not taking a step until she was certain they were alone. She turned back to the wall, touching three engraved symbols. The humming was silenced. The only sounds in the room were the heavy breathing of the woman and child.

"There was a battle here." Though very young, the little girl spoke with the confident voice of an adult. "But it ended long ago."

"You're right," the woman agreed. Looking around once again at the signs of fierce fighting, she shivered. Clutching the girl's hand a little tighter, she started walking towards an opening to the outside world. "Let's get going. We need to get to the Stargate and dial outta here."

"Home?"

"It will be soon. I hope."

It was a long trek thru a barren wasteland. There were no further signs beyond the temple that there had ever been any civilization. After what felt like days of hiking through sandy dunes, she spotted the Stargate at the top of a low rising hill. Both females' paces increased sharply. When they finally reached the Gate, the woman dropped to the ground beside the DHD.

"Would you like me to dial?" the girl asked.

"No, I will. Just give me a minute." The girl scowled a bit, anxious to leave the desolation behind them. Eager to return to Earth, even though it wasn't going to be quite the same Earth she had left. Feeling tears, she swallowed hard. Crying would certainly not help anything. She looked at her guardian and made a silent vow to never add to the woman's burdens. They had both just lost their entire world, and life as they knew it would never, never be the same.

The woman rose to her feet slowly, leaning heavily on the dialer. She began to enter the address very methodically, and after what felt like hours, the gate whooshed to life. She turned to the girl. "You have the GDO, right?" The girl showed her left arm to her guardian, then pointed it at the open gate. She touched a few buttons, then nodded.

"It appears to have been successful."

"What do you mean, 'appears'?"

"We have received the return signal indicating that the iris is open. However, without a MALP, the only way we'll know for certain is to step through and come out alive on the other side without going SPLAT!!" The girl smiled brightly for her.

"You never cease to amaze me, you know that?"

"That's only because I'm way too smart for my own damn good." That earned a full laugh from the woman, and the girl smiled in pride. "Shall we see what's on the other side?"

The woman nodded. "They're probably getting a bit anxious. Let's go." Hand in hand they stepped over the threshold and into their future.

In the control room, the Commander of the SGC paced impatiently. It had been almost five minutes since the gate activated and they received SG-1's GDO-signal. Since the whole of SG-1 was in the room with him, he was more than curious, and on the verge of being seriously annoyed.

"All right, I think we've waited long enough. Close the -" Before he could finish the command, two figures stepped through. A sharp gasp echoed loudly through the control room as each recognized the intruders.

"Oh my God!" Samantha Carter was the first to speak, and the first to take action, nearly sprinting out of the booth and down to Gateroom. She ran up the ramp, only barely registering General O'Neill's order to the SF's to stand down, nor his curt dismissal. When she reached them, she pulled the woman into a close embrace, one that was as fiercely returned. "Janet. Welcome home." Sam pulled back and looked at her friend.

"All right, hate to break up the party here, ladies, but... Just who the hell are you? Because the Janet Fraiser we all know and love is dead." Even Jack O'Neill winced at his own harsh tone.

Samantha withdrew from the embrace and looked down to the child. "And who is she?"

"I am Dr Janet Fraiser. But you're absolutely right that I'm not the same Janet Fraiser that you know."

"So we're talking, what? Another one of those Alternate Universe things?" He turned back to Carter. "We did destroy that mirror, right?"

"Yes, Sir, but there's no way of knowing how many others there are out there. They could outnumber Stargates, for all we know."

"You'd think we'd have stumbled onto more of them if that were the case," said Daniel. He was still standing at the bottom of the ramp. Staring openly at their lost-friend. When she turned to look at him, he suddenly felt as though the floor disappeared beneath him, and he was falling, falling fast.

"Daniel?" Janet walked down the ramp, the girl still holding her hand tightly. "Daniel, it's..." She swallowed hard. "It's wonderful to see you again." She reached out with her free arm, snaked her hand behind his neck and pulled him close. "Thank God you're alive." She pulled him as close as humanly possible, planting a hard kiss on his startled lips. It only took about a half a second before he was responding in kind, much to the surprise of his teammates.

Jack turned to his second in command. "I didn't know they had a... a .. thing.. You?"

Sam shook her head. "No clue. I know her death hit Daniel especially hard, but... I didn't think.. this."

The two parted breathless. Janet took an unsteady step back. The girl at her side tugged her arm. Janet looked down at her, then to Sam.

"So who's your little friend?"

"You don't know her?" Sam shook her head. "This is Grace. She's... she's your daughter, Sam. Or, rather, my Sam's daughter." She turned back to Jack. "Sam's and Jack's."

Sam and Jack exchanged surprised glances, then Sam knelt down in front of the girl. "Hi, Grace." The girl remained close to Janet, but she gave Sam a small smile. "How old are you?"

"I'll be five in December." Grace looked sternly at the woman who looked just like her mother. "You're not really my mother. Do you have a daughter like me?"

Sam shook her head slowly. "No. I'm sorry."

"Well that's good then, because I won't have to worry about entrophic cascade failure. I can stay here, can't I?"

Sam looked up to Jack, who was frowning until he caught her glance. He then looked back down at "their" daughter, a look of longing fleeting through his eyes. "Yeah, sure. Of course." He looked back over to Janet.

Sam followed his gaze. "Sir, there is probably no risk to Janet, either, since... since our Janet isn't alive."

"Right. So I guess you're both stayin'." He looked back down to Grace and Sam. His family, but only in another life. He released a heavy sigh. "Daniel, you wanna go scrounge up some quarters for them? We'll get you settled in, then you can tell us what you're doing here. Uh, Daniel? Yoo-hoo! Spacemonkey!! Daniel??"

The archaeologist was still standing wide-eyed and open-mouthed, staring at Janet. When Jack waved a hand in front of his, he finally snapped out of his trance. "What? Oh, quarters. Right. Umm, why don't you two come with me."

"No!" The sudden shout came from Grace, who had thrown her arms around Sam's neck. "I wanna stay with you. Please. I know you're not really my mom, but you are. You look just like her, and you sound just like her, and...please don't make me leave you. Not yet. Please!"

Sam stood, lifting the child with her. She looked to Jack for direction.

"Go ahead. And see to it that they get over to the Infirmary for the works." Sam nodded, and the four of them left the Gateroom, leaving Jack and Teal'c alone.

"So. You haven't said a word, big guy. What's up?"

"I have a bad feeling about this." Jack's frown deepened. "Many changes are beginning, and though they seem good now, I fear they will not remain that way."

"Only time will tell, I'm afraid. Ya know, I think I'm beginning to really hate these alternate universe thingy's."


	2. Graceful Exit

Chapter Two

Graceful Exit

The corridor was eerily quiet as the small group walked through. Janet could hear every soft breath, every footstep, every rustle of clothing as they tread wordlessly towards the Infirmary. The Infirmary. Once her home away from home, now she was a stranger. Everything here was oddly familiar and foreign at once.

Janet glanced behind her at her young ward. Grace was still in Samantha Carter's arms, her head resting on the woman's shoulders. It was still hard to believe they had survived when everyone they loved had perished around them. How would such a young child cope with losing her entire world? She'd have to ask Cassie about that sometime. Cassie. Janet winced and stumbled slightly. Daniel was immediately responsive, grabbing her arm firmly, keeping her on her feet.

"Are you okay?" His blue eyes seemed to pierce her own with his concern. "I'm fine... just, I was just thinking about," she swallowed hard, "Cassie."

Daniel's eyes widened a bit in understanding, and he turned his gaze toward Sam. "Sam, I think we should-"

"Yes, we should."

"Cassie... She, um, she's here. Well, not here at the base. But she's here, she still lives in um, in, well, in Janet's house." As he finished the statement, he couldn't look her in the eye any longer. He stared at his shoes. Shifted his weight.

"Good. I'm glad. Do you think, perhaps later could I see her? Or maybe it would be too upsetting..."

When Daniel continued to stare unresponsively at his feet, Sam answered. "I'll talk to her, Janet. Cassie's a tough young lady. I think it might be good for her to see you. For both of you."

Janet nodded in appreciation. Without another word, they resumed their promenade to the infirmary.

As they sat in the infirmary Sam watched Grace in wonder. She was the spitting image of the girl she had encountered while stranded on the Prometheus all those months ago. How could she possibly have seen a daughter that didn't exist in her own reality?

Grace wouldn't leave her side. Dr. Werner had to examine her with Samantha holding her hand throughout the ordeal. As soon as she was finished, Grace scrambled onto Sam's lap and wound her arms tightly about her "mother's" neck. Sam gently returned the embrace, uncertain what to say or do to comfort the child.

Sam looked to Janet, who was being examined on the gurney opposite them. Janet looked remarkably calm and stoic, considering what she had been through. What little she had revealed so far had sounded devastating.

"You're wondering about them, aren't you?" Janet's unexpected query startled Sam out of her reverie.

"Them?"

"Grace's parents."

"Oh. Them." Sam's expression turned guilty and embarrassed, and she looked down at the girl resting in her arms. "Yeah, I suppose I was. So... how... when..." She sighed in frustration. "What happened?"

"Well, I should start at the beginning, I think. Which would be the day Captain Samantha Carter walked into the SGC full of piss and vinegar and ready to take on the galaxy."

"Wait a sec, "Captain"? She was military?"

"Yes. Why is that such a surprise?"

"It's just that, in every alternate universe we've encountered, well, in the two, rather, um, I wasn't... or my double wasn't in the Air Force. A civilian attachment, kind of like Daniel. You mean to tell me there's a reality out there in which I am in the military and in which Jack O'Neill and I are involved??"

"Well, yes. Married, actually." Sam appeared to be swallowing her tongue. Janet continued a little too nonchalantly. "Now where was I? Right. I hadn't worked with Col. O'Neill much until after you joined SG1, but I can tell you that even I noticed a significant change in him after the two of you met. He was... I don't know, happier? Or more like, a little less resentful of the rest of the world. And there was a light in his eyes whenever the two were in a room together that... it was something special, but something you'd have to see to believe.

"Just a couple of weeks into their new roles as explorers of the galaxy, we got hit with the Broca Virus." Sam's eyes widened in memory. "You guys got it too, huh? Well, basically, it forced them to admit their mutual attraction and deal with it head on. After that, the banter between them... it stepped up a notch. Always on the verge of, but never quite crossing the line. It was actually kind of fun to watch.

"Then the Captain and the Colonel were stranded together in Antarctica." Again, Sam acknowledged the shared experience. "They became very close after that. And very conscious of how close they were growing. But they were determined to continue their work together, to keep the team intact. So they towed the line. Then we met "the AU Sam", as he kept calling her. She and Charles Kowalski came through the quantum mirror after Apophis had attacked and destroyed most of their Earth. And she and her Jack had been married for a year."

Sam shook her head in amazement. This was too familiar. Too close to the truth of her reality.

"So after "AU Sam" had gone back to her reality, things changed. Dramatically. It was the same night she left that he asked you to dinner and things were never quite the same."

Sudden memory flooded Sam's mind.

She had just pressed the button in the lift when someone jumped in through the closing doors. Colonel O'Neill. This was going to be awkward.

"So... Carter. Going home? Bit early for you. It's only 22:00."

"It's been a long day, Sir."

"Yeah."

They stood in silence for a moment.

"Had dinner yet?"

"No, Sir. I was just gonna grab some fastfood on the way home."

"Ya need to eat better than that. Why don't ya come on over and enjoy a late night BBQ at Casa O'Neill."

She was tempted. Lord, she was tempted. She almost said yes. But she couldn't quite bring herself to do it when she knew, without a shadow of doubt, that they would be passing the point of no return if she did. She just wasn't quite ready to face that yet. She shook her head slowly, sadly. "I'm sorry, Sir. I really don't think that's a good idea tonight."

Sam watched his eyes flicker with the pain of her rejection, then suddenly turn hard and cold. Defenses were up now. The lift stopped, the doors opened, and O'Neill walked out without a word. "Sir?"

He paused and turned back to her, his expression wary.

"Rain check?"

After a long moment, he nodded, turned abruptly and walked away.

"Sam? You there?"

Sam again shook her head, this time to clear the memory. She looked at Janet with an expression of such sadness that Janet almost cried out to her. "I guess this is where our realities divided. She accepted his dinner invite. I said no. Strange that such a small thing could make such a difference." Janet nodded. "So... what happened after that?"

"Well, it was a tense year for the two of you... them. To be honest, I'm not sure just how close to the line they were treading, or even which side of it they were on. It never seemed to interfere with the job though. They were damn good at keeping the personal and professional separate. Until Col O'Neill was stranded on Edora.

"She went off the deep end in no time. Spent three months solid working night and day, hardly eating, barely sleeping, to bring him home. When they finally managed to reach him..." Janet's eyes closed in a wince. "He... he was a jerk. A complete ass to her. Had a fling with one of the natives. Sam almost killed him over it. We found out, a few weeks later, that it had been part of a set-up to out some rogue agents out scavenging the galaxy for any technology they could beg, borrow, or steal. He wasn't supposed to have gotten stuck on that planet when he did, but he turned it to his advantage. After the whole thing was resolved, after Sam learned the truth, they were closer than ever. Well, after Sam tore him a new one for the whole bloody affair.

"Next thing we knew...She finally accepted his invitation to his cabin out in Minnesota." Janet smiled, remembering what Sam had told her. "She told me later that she'd meant to decline, but couldn't resist when he threw in a comment about the 'home of the loons'... anyway, they apparently traveled there by way of Washington, where the President himself officiated their nuptials. Mr. and Mrs. Jack O'Neill returned just in time to save the Asguard from the Replicators."

Janet paused to let Sam digest all that she had just learned. She watched Sam's arms tighten around her "daughter". She wondered if she should continue as she studied Sam's deeply saddened eyes.

"So what happened after that?" The unannounced voice of General O'Neill startled both women, as well as Grace. Her head jerked off of Sam's shoulder and as soon as she saw him, she jumped off of Sam and ran to Jack. She threw her arms around his waist and squeezed fiercely. Jack's hands moved to her shoulders as his eyes found Sam. What do I do now? Sam shrugged, uncertain what to suggest.

Jack knelt down and picked the girl up. He walked with her to the foot of the gurney Sam occupied and sat down. "Please, keep going. I'd love to hear the next part of this story... which I'm guessing has something to do with this little one?"

For a split second, Sam freaked. The moment passed, though, and suddenly, the world felt right, in a way she had never felt before. She looked at her daughter, at the man who was her husband in another life. A life she could have had... if she had only had the courage to make it so.


	3. Defining Grace

Chapter Three

Defining Grace

Jack shifted Grace to a more comfortable position and waited patiently for this "AU Janet" to continue her tale. He glanced over at Carter, caught her gaze.

How much did you hear?

Most of it.

Oh. OH!

Yeah.

Jack tried to pull his gaze away from her, but as Janet began to speak again, it was like a spell had been cast. To fight it was futile.

"Well, most of the base had no idea they were married, not until after Anise brought that Za'tarc testing device here, anyway. After that, things settled down fairly well. Then they were trapped on P3R-118. Their memories were suppressed, replaced with false identities. They were forced into mining as slaves for a world trying to survive an ice age. Apparently they had been just as close, maybe even closer, living as those alter-egos. Sam returned from that planet carrying Grace."

Neither Jack nor Sam moved throughout Janet's monologue. Not a blink, barely a breath escaped either of them, for they were trapped in the memories of their own time together, their only time together, a strange heaven they found in that frozen hell. For Samantha, though, the torment was even greater. For she alone knew those same consequences were only narrowly averted, with the help of the now-deceased Janet Fraiser.

_Are you sure you want to do this? How could I do anything else? If I thought there was some way, any way it could work... If there was any other alternative, don't you think I would jump on it? This is the way it has to be. Jack O'Neill is my commanding officer. There is no way on earth I could justify being pregnant with his child. And it's not like we know for certain I'm pregnant. It is a possibility, and I'm simply making sure that it does not become a reality. It just has to be this way._

Such bitter tears Samantha had never cried, before or since the night they came home from P3R-118.

Jack watched Sam's face darken, and saw tears welling in her eyes. He reached out to brush them from her cheek. She turned into his palm, drawing warmth from his touch. She tried to close her eyes to the memories, but they only flooded her stronger and faster. Their first night together as Jona and Thera, taking comfort in the only thing that seemed familiar. A feeling of freedom, of falling, and knowing that it would be a safe landing.

When Sam opened her eyes again, Jack could feel himself falling in love with her all over again. Just when he'd thought he'd nipped that thing, there it was again. And he couldn't fight it. Not holding their daughter in his arms, not with her tears running down his fingers. He let himself get completely lost in her. Just as he had a few short years ago while living a life of lies. He remembered every touch, every caress, every stolen kiss as though it were happening now. He remembered the ease and comfort with which they had joined. Secret promises whispered long ago and almost forgotten until now.

No matter what happens, know that I will always love you. Always.

A promise forgotten, but a promise kept, nonetheless.

"Always."

Jack's soft-spoken reminder caused Sam to gasp sharply. Finally overwhelmed, she fled the room, an anguished cry escaping her, just audible over her hasty exit. Jack looked down at the now-sleeping child in his arms, then over to Janet, who had been silent witness to the encounter.

"Go on. You really should talk to her."

He gently laid Grace on the gurney, and then turned back to Janet with a look of apprehension.

"If you don't talk to her now, it will only get harder." Jack sighed, dug his hands in his pockets, and left the room, following the direction Sam had taken.

Sam ran down the corridor towards her lab. Instinct was driving her now rather than thought. When she reached the lab, though, she couldn't face it. There were too many memories in there. So she kept running, until she found herself in a stairwell. She trod downward, dropping lower and lower until she reached rock bottom. She fell to the ground, wrapping her arms around her legs, burying her head in her arms. She kept trying to choke back the tears, which continued pouring out relentlessly.

It was only a couple of minutes before she heard the heavy tread of General O'Neill. Sam cringed. She really didn't want him to see her like this. Swallowing hard, she desperately tried to regain composure. She almost had herself under control by the time he reached the bottom. Then he sat down next to her, and all she wanted to do was start bawling again.

"I don't really know where to begin," he said very softly.

Sam smiled. "Words really aren't your strong suit, are they, Sir?"

"I'm a man of action. Always have been." He lifted his arm and draped it across her shoulders, pulling her close.

"I know." Her voice was muffled by his chest now. He felt her tremble slightly and tightened his arm in response. "What happened, Jack? When did we lose track... how could we forget this?"

"I never forgot."

Sam lifted her head to look him in the eye. "Never?"

"When that... that "entity" thing took over your body and forced me to zat you... twice... It almost killed me, killing you."

Sam looked at him for a long time without speaking. "So you pulled away, shut me out. To try to keep from hurting too much..."

"Yeah."

"And the distance just kept growing... then we lost Daniel... And a few months later, I almost lost you, thanks to Maybourne."

"But you found me."

"Yeah." Sam sighed and rested her head on his shoulder again. "But things were different. Between us. They had been for so long, I... I started to wonder if maybe I'd just imagined... things."

Jack shifted his position to face her more directly. "If I had thought for one instant that there was a way we could have..." he waved at the air between them, "this, without endangering ourselves or the team, I never would have walked away after that whole memory-stamp thing. Believe me, not a night has passed since that I haven't dreamt of those short weeks Jona and Thera shared."

"Really?"

Feeling he'd already said too much, Jack simply nodded.

Sam mulled that thought in her head for a moment. "Every night?" Now it was Jack's turn to look a bit embarrassed. To her delight, though, he didn't turn away from her. "Wow. I thought it was just me."

Now Jack was caught off-guard. "Really?!"

Sam nodded. After another moment, she looked down and sighed. "So... where do we go from here?"

Jack took his time answering, wanting to say the right thing, but unsure what that was. Finally, he settled on, "That's up to you."

Sam rolled her eyes. "That doesn't help me one damned bit, **Sir**."

"What do you want me to say?"

"I want you to say... I want you... to say... what you feel...about me."

"Oh."

"Well?"

"I'm thinking!" She hit him on the arm, and none to lightly, either. "Ow!! Hey! All right, all right." He took a deep breath and plunged in headfirst. "I.. umm...I feel... Ah, hell. Carter, you're the best-damned second I've ever worked with. You're the smartest, most talented, most devoted and loyal, strongest, most stubborn, most honorable, and most beautiful woman I've ever had the privilege of knowing. I started falling for you the minute I laid eyes on you, and I haven't stopped yet.

"However, I am not about to do a damn thing that will endanger your career, your life, or our team."

"Oh." Sam looked down, lost as to how she could respond to such a declaration.

Jack gently tipped her head back up to meet him. "That is why I say it's up to you. It always has been, Samantha. I'd retire in a heartbeat if you asked. Or I can stay right here working by your side. And no matter what you say, I will always be here for you."

Sam gasped, then looked at him and swallowed back the fresh round of tears threatening to spill over. She took in a shaky breath, then another. "I - I think... What I really want is-"

The sudden loud clanging of the emergency evacuation alarms cut her off. Two well-trained soldiers rose to their feet and ran up the stairwell.


	4. Graceful Destiny

Chapter Four

Graceful Destiny

Janet Frasier leaned back against the raised head of her make-shift bed. One leg was pulled up to her chest, the other folded beneath her. She studied her surroundings with careful scrutiny, noting every little difference, every telling sign that she wasn't really home. The beds were arranged a little differently, and the soiled linens container wasn't where it should be. And the door to the closet storing the cleaning supplies was marked with a restroom sign. She sighed deeply, knowing she would never feel completely at ease in surroundings so hauntingly familiar and yet achingly foreign.

She looked over to the bed next to hers, reassuring herself that Grace was still there, still safe, and still alive. She was the only other survivor of the brutal annihilation of all of humanity. The transition to this new life, this new reality, was going to be difficult at best. How could anyone possibly be prepared for something like this, let alone such a young child?

A soft tap at the door caught her attention, and she was grateful for the opportune distraction from her morbid thoughts. "Please come in," she invited.

Daniel Jackson opened the door just enough to stick his head in. He glanced first to Grace, then Janet. "She asleep?" Janet nodded. "I could come back-"

"No, please. Stay. I could use some company."

"Um, all right." He opened the door and took a hesitant step in. "You sure you're up for... for visitors?"

"YES!" Her shout was tempered only by the fact that it was whispered.

"Okay! I, um, that is, I'm not alone. I've brought someone to see you." From behind him emerged a smiling Cassandra.

"Cassie! Oh my God. I didn't expect... I didn't dare hope..." Before she could finish, Cassie had wrapped her arms around her mother in a warm, tight embrace.

"Welcome home, Mom," Cassie's voice was as warm and happy and melodic as she'd remembered. After a long moment, Cassie pulled back. "I knew you would come back to us. It was only a matter of time."

"You knew? Why didn't you say something before?" Daniel sounded angry and hurt.

"You wouldn't have believed me. I knew you would have to see for yourself."

"Cassie...Daniel explained to you, didn't he? That I'm not really-"

"That you have traveled to us across the boundaries of time and space. Yes."

"I'm not the same person as-"

"So Daniel keeps saying. And I keep trying to explain that you are. I know that you are different, but you are Janet Fraiser. And you do belong here."

"I wish it were that simple."

"It will be. In time." Cassie again embraced her mother. "Trust me. You've come home." Cassie released her and stood up. "And now, I'm going to leave the two of you to talk for a bit while I say 'Hi' to Sam and Jack." With all the grace that comes with youth, Cassie left the room. Janet looked at Daniel, who still seemed to be having a hard time making eye contact with her.

"Thank you, Daniel."

"For what?" He seemed genuinely confused. Janet smiled. "For bringing Cassie. I... I really appreciate it."

"Oh. Yeah. Um.. You're welcome." Some obscure speck of nothing had caught the interest of his foot, which seemed intent on obliterating it from existence.

"Daniel?"

"Yeah?"

"Look at me. Please." After a full thirty seconds, Daniel lifted his head, his blue eyes focusing intently on her. The pain behind them took her breath away.

"I have no idea... I don't know what to say to you. I feel like... like just talking to you is... it's like a betrayal..."

She was blown away. That was the last reaction she had expected, particularly from Daniel. She closed her eyes for a moment and tried to see the situation from his perspective. She could imagine it all too well. "A little under a year ago, the Daniel Jackson I knew and..." she almost said loved. She wasn't quite ready for that. Neither was he, she could tell. "He was killed on P3X-666, while I was treating an injured Airman. He was hit with a staff blast, killed instantly. I was right there, but I never had a chance to try and save him."

Daniel's stare intensified, if that was possible. "That's where I - we lost Janet."

"Oh. OH! I mean, wow!" She paused to take this new information in. She looked back to Daniel, a new layer of empathy woven into her eyes. "I understand how wrong it all feels. Believe me, none of this feels right to me... Except... except for when I kissed you." She paused and swallowed hard. "God help me, I've never felt anything so right before in my life."

"Me either." His voice was so soft she almost didn't hear him. Almost. "Any idea how to explain that?"

Janet took her time, thinking carefully. "When I saw you die like that... it was like my whole world turned upside down. We'd only just gotten you back, and we were really growing... comfortable again. And suddenly you were gone... and it was only in that moment that I realized..."

"That you had fallen in love with one of you dearest friends," he finished for her. She nodded wordlessly. Daniel finally figured out what his legs were for and walked to Janet's side. "Is it actually possible that fate has some sort of warped sense of humor... that we had to watch each other die just to get it through our thick heads?"

"You know, I'm starting to wonder that myself," she answered with a smile. Daniel finally sat down beside her, taking her smaller hand in his. "So... what do you want to do about this?"

"Let's just take this one day at a time for now. And for the record... Welcome home, Janet." He dipped his head down to meet hers with a tender kiss.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE"

The scream came from Grace, and just as suddenly, the emergency evacuation alarms were shrieking.


	5. Survival of Grace

Chapter Five

Survival of Grace

Jack O'Neill walked into the make-shift infirmary unobserved. The room was only slightly chaotic as nurses attended a couple of SF's suffering from smoke inhalation. He spotted Carter and Fraiser, sitting with Grace and Daniel in one corner of the room. Grace was curled up on Carter's lap, and Daniel was sitting close to Janet, his arm around her shoulders, her head resting on his.

Jack took a moment to observe this child who was almost, but not quite, his. She looked so sweet and innocent nestled in the arms of the woman who was almost, but not quite, her mother. Almost his wife. But not quite. Might this child be the key to finding their way to each other after all this time? It was certainly wild and strange enough to suit their unorthodox lifestyles. He shook his head, trying to reign in his thoughts. It was too late for that now, wasn't it? After all, she was engaged, to someone who wasn't him. She already made the decision to move on with her life. And yet... There was that conversation they had just a short bit ago, one that had ended far too soon.

Or far too late. Jack silently cursed himself for saying so much. He had never intended to lay his soul bare before her so bluntly. It was so out of character for him, he still felt squirmy inside remembering what he'd told her. He knew he'd crossed the line, and he'd sworn to himself long ago he wouldn't ever do that to her. Yet when he saw her there, weeping silently over what might have been, he couldn't help himself. So where do they go from here? He found himself wondering again if maybe, just maybe there was reason for hope. It was at that moment that Sam looked up and caught him staring at her. She smiled, a heart-warming smile filled with too many emotions for him to name. For a moment, Jack knew there was still hope.

Dr. Werner naturally chose that moment to approach the General. "General O'Neill, we have two SF's suffering from smoke inhalation, and one Technician with second and third degree burns over 80 percent of his body. He was in the room in which the explosions occurred. I'm not sure if he's going to make it, Sir. The next twenty four hours are critical. If he survives the night, I'd like to transfer him to a burn center as soon as possible for more specialized treatment."

"Is he up to talking by any chance?"

"I'm sorry, Sir, but he's still unconscious."

"Thank you, Doctor. How 'bout Fraiser and the kid?"

"Dr. Fraiser appears to be in perfect health. I'm ready to release her now. As for Grace... Sir, just before the alarms went off, she woke up suddenly, screaming wildly. She didn't quiet until the alarms finally silenced. She seems to be fine now. I'm really not sure what to make of it."

"Considering what she's been through, wouldn't you think nightmares are, well, normal?"

"It could be that, Sir. I really don't know. Physically speaking, she is in perfect health. I think the best thing for her now would to be to get out of here... normally I'd say take her home, surround her with the familiar, but I don't suppose she's likely to find anything familiar here. She should probably remain with Dr Fraiser, at least for now."

"All right. We'll keep a close eye on her. I have a feeling that she may want to stay with Carter, though."

"I think whatever she is comfortable with is probably the best way to go, Sir"

"Thank you again, doc. I'll let you get back to your patients."

"Thank you sir." Dr. Werner turned and left him alone with his thoughts once again. His eyes wandered in the same direction as his mind, to Samantha Carter. She had apparently been watching his conversation with the doctor, although she was too far back to have heard much. He offered her another smile, and was about to walk over when Cassie came in.

"Jack!" Cassie's greeting was as enthusiastic as ever, as she wrapped her arms around her honorary uncle in a tight hug. "What happened? We heard the alarms, and when I went back to see mom, they said she was moved up here."

"Yeah, there was a bit of a fire in the rooms right below them. It was just a precautionary evac of the infirmary. Your 'mom'," he said with a bit of a wince, "is fine. Just released, in fact. I'll need to fully debrief her before I can release them from the base, though."

"But you're gonna let her come home, right?"

"Yeah, sure. You betcha, even," he answered with a grin. "Shall we?" He offered Cassie his arm and the two walked over to Janet and Sam. "Doc says you two are free to go," he said by way of greeting. Grace looked up at the sound of his voice and gave him an earsplitting grin. This kid was gonna worm her way into his heart in no time. He sat down beside Sam and Grace promptly played musical laps between them. "Grace, would you like to go with Cassie down to the mess hall for some Jello?"

"Cassie!!!" Grace threw herself in a flying leap at the young woman. "I missed you! I'm so glad you're here!!" Cassie accepted the girl's hug with a confused expression.

"Cassie, I'd like you to meet Grace O'Neill. She came here with Janet." Cassie looked from Jack over to Sam, then finally to her mother.

"Don't worry, I'll explain it on the way home. That is, assuming I can go..." Janet looked back to O'Neill with questions in her eyes.

"Certainly. But, uh, first, we need a full debriefing on ... everything."

Janet nodded. "I see."

Cassie jumped back in to the conversation smoothly. "So, Grace, how about that Jello?"

"You always do that when you want to have one of your grown up talks. You're lucky I like Jello so much. Do they have blue Jello here? That's my favorite."

Jack smiled at how much like her mother she sounded. He looked back again to Sam. "They've always got blue Jello. It's my favorite, too." He winked at Sam as he finished, causing a blush to tint her cheeks. He loved doing that to her.

Sam knew the moment Jack entered the room. She always knew. Sitting with their daughter in her lap, she was more aware than ever. She nuzzled Grace a little closer to her. She had already started thinking of Grace as her daughter. As strange as her entrance into Sam's life was, it felt the most natural thing in the world to be comforting her very maternally.

She wondered if he felt similar paternal instincts kicking in. She held in a sad sigh as she thought of his first foray into fatherhood, and the nightmare it had ended in. She was still amazed that he'd found the strength, the sheer will power to continue living, especially carrying such a heavy load of guilt. She knew he still felt the guilt for his son's death as acutely today as the day of Charlie's accidental death. Now, after all he had suffered, fate had intervened to give him the second chance he would probably never have allowed himself. Had gone to rather drastic measures, it seemed.

As for herself... Sam had realized, quite clearly, where her heart belonged. It hit her the moment she saw Grace with Janet. Her life suddenly came to a stand still, and she could pinpoint the exact moment the walls came crashing down around her. It terrified her so badly she had turned tail and ran. Literally. Some brave soldier she was!

She had made a huge mistake, thinking she could let go of her feelings for him. They ran too deep to be cut out, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't change her heart. It knew where she belonged. Tried to tell her as only the heart can. Skipping a beat when he enters the room and flashes that smile. Aching terribly when he left for a weekend of fishing alone. Stopping dead in its tracks when she watched him go down from a staff-blast. How could she possibly have hoped to ignore that?

She couldn't. And she was tired of fighting with herself. She accepted. Sam looked up and found Jack watching her from across the room. She smiled, letting all that was in her heart to shine through for the first time. She almost laughed when he staggered back a bit before smiling back. She really loved doing that to him.

In the SGC Briefing Room sat four nervous SG1 team members and a very anxious alternate-universe-Dr Janet Fraiser. The tale the doctor was about to tell was the story of the destruction of humanity, and they could only imagine the loss. They were still guessing the cause, still wondering if the fate dealt to Janet Fraiser was still awaiting them in the unseen future. After a long, silent, pregnant pause, Janet finally began to speak, her warm alto voice becoming hard and cold with a single phrase.

"The Wraith."

Four faces frowned in non-recognition. "You haven't heard of them?" Four heads shook in denial. "They... they are a very powerful, terrifying race. It was the Wraith who defeated the Ancients." She paused to gauge their reactions. Jack's jaw was set in determined, if barely controlled, frustration. Sam looked almost eager to hear more, Daniel looked like he was about to wet his pants, and Teal'c, she was pretty sure, had a darker complexion before this briefing began.

"When the Atlantis team first returned, it seemed the answer to our prayers. They brought back some really incredible technology, and had only scratched the surface of the Ancient City."

"Wait a second, the Atlantis team returned? How? When?"

"It was only about three weeks after they left that the first team from Atlantis made it back home. Unfortunately, they weren't able to find a sufficient power supply to 'gate back directly, so they sort of leap-frogged across the galaxies in a circuitous route home. They didn't know they were followed by the Wraith.

"It was the Atlantis team who was responsible for the awakening of these..." she trailed off, remembering just how nightmarish those creatures were, remembering watching as they consumed countless colleagues, remembering friends lives being sucked out of them before her very eyes. "They were monsters. Creatures of indescribable evil. They-they sucked the life out of people. Literally." She closed her eyes and swallowed hard. "I can't tell you how many people I watched die at their hands. How many bodies I stumbled over, had to crawl around and over and through... bodies shriveled up like mummies, drained so completely that only the horror and shock remained petrified into their faces.

"Apparently these things were in some sort of hibernation when the Atlantis team accidentally woke them up... and they woke up hungry. They normally emerge from their hibernation after several centuries of sleep, then they roam around the Pegasus Galaxy feeding off of every living thing they can catch.

"They went so far between feedings because they left so few survivors; it took that long for a population to... to respawn enough to feed them all the next time. By the time they went back to hibernation, they had wiped out many species to the point of complete extinction.

"The Wraith learned of our existence with the first person they... consumed. They followed the team to Earth, then laid waste to the entire planet... before spreading throughout our entire galaxy like a plague. We were down to the last few hundred survivors in just three days." Again, Janet had to stop, regain composure after mentally reliving the last few days in her own reality. She focused on her breathing, taking slow, measured breaths to steady her shaky nerves.

"Most of the survivors were the people who managed to escape to the Alpha Site, which included most of the SGC personnel and a small handful of others. When the Wraith found the Alpha Site, Sam grabbed Grace and nearly threw her into my arms. She dialed up P3K-866, told me about the quantum device they had found there just a few days before... She begged me to go, to save her daughter. I'd already lost Cassie... she never made it off Earth... Grace and I managed to gate out seconds before Sam set off the self-destruct."

When she finished, the only sounds in the room were the soft ticking of a clock and the deep throttle of machinery humming that was ever-present in the SGC. Janet kept her eyes closed, holding back tears, until Daniel reached out to her. One gentle hand squeezed the back of her neck. She turned her head to him and opened her eyes to the deep concern and affection radiating from his gaze. She wanted to smile, to reassure him that she would be okay, but the smile just wouldn't come.

"Is there any chance that some of these 'Wraith' followed you through the device?" The quiet words came from the military mind of General O'Neill.

"It's possible, but not likely, at least not directly. The Alpha Site's Gate was blown up about two seconds after Grace and I stepped through. Some of the concussion blew back through the Gate just before it shut down, strong enough to knock us off our feet. And there weren't any Wraith present near the Gate when we dialed out, so I don't think they got the address."

"Still, they may have been able to follow the trace of the wormhole while the connection was established." This came from Lt Col Carter.

"The Wraith are a technologically advanced race, are they not, Dr Fraiser?"

"Yes, Teal'c. A far more advanced race than any we've encountered before, with the possible exception of the Asgard. They have some pretty formidable weapons."

"I have heard stories of the Wraith. Stories mothers would tell their children to frighten them into behaving. But they were never considered to be based in any truth."

"Old wives' tales," Daniel commented. Teal'c raised an eyebrow at him.

"Well then, looks like we need to send a team out there to destroy this device immediately."

"Uh, Jack, don't you think we should get just a tiny bit of information about it before we blow it to kingdom come??"

"Daniel, don't you think we have all the information we need? There is a race of really nasty alien bad guys capable of wiping out humanity that could be using that thing as a means to reach us... any time now."

"But... but whoever had the technology to build that device might have built something we could use. And we'll never know if we don't at least take a look first before we shoot."

Jack closed in eyes and muttered a silent prayer that something would keep him from being the cause of his friend's untimely death.

"I can tell you this much, Sir, it wasn't built by the Ancients or any other race we've encountered. We weren't really able to find out much about it though. We only found it after... after our Daniel Jackson had been killed on P3X-666." Janet caught Sam wincing out of the corner of her eye, but she kept her gaze on the General. O'Neill heaved a sigh and scrubbed his eyes with one hand.

"All right Daniel. I'll give you a couple hours. Get as much info as you can and get out. I'll send SG Teams 2 and 3 with you-"

"With all due respect, sir, I'd like to go with them. I am the only person in this reality who has had any experience with the Wraith... well, in this galaxy, at least."

Jack took his time considering her request, but finally nodded his permission. He turned to Teal'c. "You may as well go too, big guy. I hope you paid close attention to mother's stories." Teal'c nodded his acceptance, but raised an eyebrow at Jack over 'mother's stories'. He then turned to Carter. "I'd like you to work on this 'leap-frogging' theory; see if you can find a way to make it work here."

"I'd need the addresses of the Gate's in the Pegasus Galaxy, which we don't have." Sam turned to Janet. "Unless you happen to know them?"

"Not much. But I do know the addresses for the route our Atlantis team took home. I'm sorry, I wish I could be more help."

"That's a lot of help right there. Don't worry, we'll get by." Sam offered a smile of consolation to her friend.

"All right then, before you gate out, Daniel, you and the doc get the addresses to Carter. Plan to head out for the quantum-device-planet in two hours."


	6. Grace Displaced

Chapter Six

Grace Displaced

"Receiving MALP transmission now, sir." The screen crackled from static to... brown. Solid brown.

"What the...??"

"It appears to be a sandstorm sir. A really nasty one at that. Winds are raging at... wow. Over a hundred miles per hour, sir."

Damn. Jack kept the curse to himself. "Close the gate down, Davis. Sorry, campers, looks like the mission is scratched. For now. Best guess as to when that thing will blow over?"

Davis shook his head. "Hours, at least, probably more like days."

"Schedule check-ins every twelve hours, let me know as soon as the weather's clear," he ordered. Disappointment echoed on the faces of his teams, but they resigned themselves to the change of plans. He looked down at his watch and was surprised at how late it had become. "I think it's time for everyone to head home. Get a good nights rest, yadda, yadda, yadda."

Teal'c nodded, Daniel shrugged, and Janet sighed. Carter, though, turned to him with a question in her eyes. He knew without a word being spoken what was on her mind. Grace. "She's probably still in the mess hall with Cassie. Shall we?" Sam nodded, following him out of the room; Daniel and Janet, in turn, followed her.

When they reached the mess hall, it was living up to its name rather well. A full-blown food fight was ensuing between Cassie and Grace and what looked to be SG-9 underneath mounds of jello of every color. The room came to a sudden halt at the piercing whistle of the base commander.

"Just what in God's name do you think you're doing, Major Benton?"

The man had the good sense to look utterly humiliated. "I'm sorry, Sir, I guess things got a little out of hand."

"A little?! Ya think!!!? Get this mess cleaned up! Not one of you is to leave this room until it is spotless! Got it?" A chorus of "yes sir's" echoed from around the room, one from underneath a table directly in front of Jack. He crouched down and spied a little girl with curly brown hair full of jello. "I see you found the blue stuff. Ya wanna come on out of there?"

With all the dignity and bravado she could muster, Grace O'Neill emerged from under the table. "I'm sorry, sir. I didn't mean to get them in trouble." Her words sounded sincere enough, but there was a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. Oh yeah, she was definitely her father's daughter all right. Jack sighed.

"They got themselves into trouble. Now they get to suffer the consequences. As for you, young lady... You're going to need to clean up before you can leave the base." He looked around the room again. "Where's Cassie?" Cassie emerged from just out of sight around a corner, a very sheepish looking Tech. Winters right behind her. Both O'Neill eyebrows inclined at her. "Cassie? Thought you were supposed to be keeping an eye on her?"

"Sorry, Jack... we just... we got carried away, I guess."

"So I heard." He shook his head at the sight before him. He was pretty sure he'd never seen quite so much Jello before. Well, as long as you didn't count that Jello-wrestling match he took Teal'c to a couple of years ago. He turned to Janet. "Would you mind taking these two young ladies down to the showers?" Janet nodded, and the three ladies left.

Jack looked around once more, shook his head again, and then left the sorry looking team to clean the mess. In the corridor, Sam stopped him with a simple touch to his arm. He turned back to face her.

"Sir, there's... something I need to take care of. Before... before I do anything else. Would you ask Janet to keep Grace for just a little while?"

Jack looked at her with concern. "What's up?"

"It's... it's just something I need to do. I'll tell you later." She was being rather evasive, not even meeting his eyes as she spoke. Something was definitely wrong here. Still, he didn't want to push her, not when they'd made such good progress between them today.

"I'll take care of Grace. Go... do whatever it is you need to do. When you're done, just come on by my place. We'll probably be catching up on the Simpsons." He finished with a smile that was all for her benefit.

"Thank you, Sir. I'll see you soon." With no further explanation, Sam turned and left, almost running from him. Jack frowned, not liking the unknown. He had a very strange, but very bad feeling about this. Behind him, he heard Daniel clearing his throat rather obviously. "Yes, Daniel?"

"Do you think she's gonna go tell Pete about Grace?"

Jack's frown deepened. After the words he and Sam had exchanged earlier, the last thing he wanted to think about was her running to her fiancé's arms. "Could be something like that."

"You don't think they're actually going to last more than five minutes after that little announcement, do you?"

"I sure as hell hope not." He fairly growled the words, the openness surprising both himself and Daniel. Daniel wisely decided not to pursue the conversation further. He had much better things to do than listen to Jack growling. Like getting reacquainted with a certain red-headed doctor-or was that just "acquainted'? He shook his head as he walked down the hall towards the locker rooms. He was starting to agree with Jack on one thing; these alternate universes could certainly give you a headache.

Sam had called Pete on her way to the restaurant at which they'd first met. It seemed somehow appropriate to bring things full circle with him, to end where they had began. She sipped from her glass of wine immersed in contemplation. She still hadn't figured out how she was going to do this. It should be easier, she thought wryly, considering she was experienced at breaking off an engagement.

The fact that he knew some of the truth about her life, her work, should have made it easier. But it only felt harder, as she couldn't imagine telling him that she'd fallen in love with her CO, that that had happened long before he even came into her life. And how in the world could she explain a child they shared in an alternate reality, for cryin' out loud?!

Catching herself thinking in O'Neillisms, she chuckled softly to herself. It was then that Pete entered the restaurant. He saw her immediately, waved and offered her his usual grin. She had found it endearing once; now it almost made her wince.

"Hey there, gorgeous!" He greeted her with a kiss, but at the last moment she turned her head so that he only touched her cheek with his lips. Funny that the touch she had craved so recently made her cringe inside now.

"Hi, Pete." He knew something was wrong, she was sure. His smile faltered slightly as he sat down.

"So what's the occasion? I didn't forget some obscure little anniversary, did I?"

"No. Nothing like that." Sam took a deep breath, trying to screw up her courage. She hated causing anyone pain, especially someone who cared so much about her. This was going to be harder than she imagined. "I'm not really sure where to start..."

"The beginning usually works for me,' he replied cheekily.

"It would help if I knew when it began... What I'm about to tell you... God, this is a lot harder than I expected. Not that I thought it would be easy... It's just..." Sam blew out a huff of frustration. Pete frowned, suddenly not liking the sound of her words one bit. "Just tell me, Sam. Whatever it is... we'll get through it."

"No, Pete, **we** won't. But I hope _you_ will... someday..." She summoned up every ounce of the courage with which she would face an army of angry Jaffa, took a deep breath, and began. "I just found out -- I have a daughter."

Just then the waiter came by, asking for orders. Pete ordered a double whiskey straight. Demanded it pronto. Sam waited until his drink was brought to continue. The tension between them was palpable, almost a living entity. When the drink arrived, he polished it in one shot and ordered another. Sam finally felt urged to get this over with quickly.

"How the hell could you 'find out' you have a child?" The anger behind his words surprised Sam.

"All right, the beginning. That would be... well, the mission to P3R-118. It was a planet stuck in the middle of an ice age." Sam spoke very softly, not wanting to be overheard. "They had built a biodome over their entire city, had a synthesized environment which protected them from the harsh elements. While we were on the grand tour, we realized how they were supporting the city, where they were getting the energy supplies for such an enormous operation. They had a slave mining colony operating beneath the surface of the city.

"The team was taken hostage then, and we were all given these 'memory stamps'. Basically, they suppressed all of our memories, and implanted false identities in our minds. I believed myself to be 'Thera', an engineer in the mining colony trying to help her people survive an ice age. None of us, not the team, not the other miners, no one had any idea that there was a thriving city above us."

Sam paused as the waiter returned with Pete's second round. He offered her more wine, but she declined. One was enough; she needed to keep a clear head tonight. She looked back to Pete, relieved to find him taking it easier on this round.

"So you had no idea who you were." Sam was certain she'd never heard his voice so cold. It sent chills down her spine.

"No. Nor who my teammates were. I thought Teal'c was someone named 'Tor', Daniel was 'Carlin', and... and then-Colonel O'Neill was known as 'Jona'..." Sam trailed off for a moment, a mental flash of Jona's warm, easy smile teasing the back of her eyes. She shook her head to clear the thought. "We were stuck there, living these other lives. And while we were down there... Thera and Jona became very close." Pete's eyes narrowed as he took in how "close" she meant. "Grace was conceived down there... and I never knew it... until today."

"You mean they... what, they erased your memories of your own child? What kind of people were these guys?"

"Horribly bigoted." She paused again. How on earth would she tell him this part? "Grace is... she's brought a lot of things to the surface... between O'Neill and I. Feelings. That we've been fighting and suppressing and denying for a long time... I'm so sorry Pete. I thought I could let go, that I could change what was in my heart. I never meant to hurt you." She finally braved looking at him again, and when she did, every sense jumped on the alert.

He looked like an angered tiger ready to pounce. Make that an angry orangutan. "Let go? Oh you had damn well better let go... because there is no way you are leaving me." He jumped from his seat, grabbing her arm and dragging her to her feet.

Sam's eyes flashed in fury. "I said I'm sorry, Pete." She grabbed his hand and yanked it off of her arm, wrenching it backwards in a way the wrist was not designed for. "But this isn't your decision. You have no choice but to accept it."

"LIKE HELL!!" He roared so loudly every head in the restaurant turned, just in time to see him swinging at her head. It would be the last thing Samantha clearly remembered.


	7. Reclaiming Grace

Chapter Seven

Reclaiming Grace

Jack held Grace's hand in the lift as she chatted away about her favorite episode of the Simpsons. No question about it now, he had definitely fallen head over heals for this little lady. A soft smile lighted his eyes as they rode up toward the parking level with Janet, Cassie, and Daniel. Just as they got out, Jack's cell phone began to ring.

"O'Neill," he barked. After a lengthy pause, his eyes darkened, a frown filling his features. "I'll be right there." He hit the off button with a harsh curse. "Janet, I need you to take Grace. There's a problem in town I need to take care of."

Janet and Daniel exchanged glances as she took Grace's hand from the General. "Is it Sam?"

"Yeah." He bent down to Grace. "Don't worry, kiddo. We'll both be over there before you know it."

Grace rolled her eyes at him. "Please don't patronize me. I'm too smart for that, remember. Is she okay?"

"She's fine. She just had a little trouble with... a friend of hers. She needs a hand getting him home, that's all." Jack was relieved that this answer seemed to satisfy Grace. She smiled at him, and he felt his heart do a little somersault. She was most certainly her mother's daughter, too. He stood back up, mussing her hair a bit as he did. "Be good for the big kids, okay?" She nodded.

"I'll be back soon as I can," he told Daniel and Janet. Then he turned about face and nearly ran to his truck. As he got in, all he could think was that he would kill the rotten bastard if he had laid so much as a finger on her. He drove on autopilot to the restaurant. He arrived to find a couple of squad cars, several local yokels, and an ambulance. His heart plummeted and his stomach threatened to turn inside out. He parked the truck illegally, slammed it into park, and jumped out of the cab without bothering to shut the door.

"Carter!" He shouted her name when he couldn't readily find her. A young detective approached him.

"General O'Neill?" Jack nodded curtly. "Lt. Colonel Carter is inside. She asked us to call you." As they made their way through the restaurant, Jack took in the damage. Several tables flipped, mirrors and other fixtures lay in shards. His brooding gaze darkened further.

Then he saw her. She was sitting at a disheveled table, looking not too much worse for the wear. He finally exhaled, only then realizing that he'd been holding his breath. As he got closer, he saw that one eye was puffing out a bit, and she had a small cut on one corner of her mouth. When he at last reached her, he crouched in front of her, gently placing his hands on hers, resting folded on her lap. "You okay?"

"Yeah." She blinked a couple of times as she drew strength from his presence. "Thank you for coming."

"Of course," he told her warmly. He looked around the rooms again, then back to her. "Just what the hell happened here?" he asked gently.

"I kicked his ass, Sir." Jack bit back a laugh. So she'd beat him to it. "I told him... about Grace. And then I told him... that I was leaving... him. He flipped. Just lost it completely. I remember him grabbing my arm... I told him he didn't have a choice... He took a swing at me... and the rest is kind of blurry. I remember thinking I was really glad I'd gone all the way through level four hand to hand... But you know what really scared me, Jack? I almost killed him. There was a moment, a terrifying moment when I saw myself ending his life... just like that... What kind of person does that make me?"

"A perfectly normal human kind." He resisted the urge to cup her face, to press his lips to hers. He stood back up, instead, and turned back to the detective. "Can I get her out of here now?"

"Yeah. We already took her statement, and there were certainly enough witnesses on her side. Hard to believe one of our own is capable of something like this." The young man shook his head in disbelief. "If we need anything else, we'll give you a call, ma'am." He turned and left them alone.

Jack offered his hand to Sam, which she accepted gratefully. "Why don't you let me give you a ride? Your car's pretty well blocked in now anyway."

She looked at him with a funny smile. He made it sound very practical, rather than show any sign of concern. She knew he felt it though, could see it in his eyes. She nodded in wordless acceptance of his offer. As he opened the door for her, she said softly, "I'm free."

Jack smiled. "Funny that. Me too. What a coincidence." As he walked round to his side, he afforded one last glance at the restaurant, and caught a glimpse of Pete Shanahan in the back of a squad car, glaring in their direction, his face looking grotesquely distorted in the flashing lights. Jack smiled grimly. No question that sonofabitch was getting his just deserts.

"Let's get the hell outta here. And for the record, Carter... I'm damned proud of you." He glanced over to her, catching her shy smile. He put the truck in gear and drove away, looking forward to picking up their daughter and going home. Together. Suddenly the future seemed a strange and happy place. How the hell was he gonna get used to that?

"Take me home, Jack" Sam's voice was surprisingly close to his ear. He looked over and found her scooting closer to him. She leaned her head on his shoulder, sighing softly. He echoed her sigh with a smile. This might not be so hard to get used to after all.

An hour later, they pulled up to his house, Grace sandwiched between them. He parked and nudged Sam. "Wakey, wakey." She opened bleary eyes. "Welcome to my humble abode."

He lifted a sleeping Grace and carried her to the door. Looking from the child to Sam, he was stuck with a dilemma... the keys in his pocket. "Uh, Carter, I need you to..."

"Yes?"

"The keys. They're in my pocket." He expected her to take Grace. Instead, she reached in his pocket and fished out the keys as if it were the most natural thing in the world. He almost yelped as certain parts of his anatomy reacted to her brazen gesture.

He carried Grace inside after Sam opened the door, took the girl into the guest bedroom. Sam followed him closely. She pulled the covers down and he slipped the child in. Just as he thought he'd made the transition without waking her, she giggled. He heard Sam chuckle behind him. "Hey, that's cheating," he teased softly.

"I just wanted you to carry me in... like my daddy always does." Jack's expression shifted into one of sympathy.

"You must miss them a lot."

"How can I miss them when they're right here?" At the frown coming off both adults, Grace felt pressed to continue. "Look, I know you're not the same. Mom's already told me all about quantum theories surrounding alternate universes," she said with the combined exaggeration of both youth and genetics. "But the fact is, I'm here. You're here. We're stuck here together. That basically makes you my parents by default, doesn't it?"

Samantha laughed out loud at her logic. She couldn't argue with her, especially when she agreed one hundred percent. "True enough, I suppose. Now it's time for you to get some sleep."

"Okay, see you in the morning." The child dropped her head down and closed her eyes. Jack leaned down and kissed her temple, whispering his goodnight. Sam copied the gesture after he moved. They left the room quietly, retreating to the living room. Sam sat down on his couch, leaned back and sighed.

"Can I get you anything?"

"I'll take two Tylenol and a stiff drink."

"Coming right up." As Jack puttered in the kitchen, Sam looked around her. Funny, she'd been here more in the last year than the seven years before. Now it looked like she was spending the night. She certainly couldn't imagine leaving Grace, not on her first night. She idly wondered what the sleeping arrangements would be between her and Jack.

Now she was thinking of him as Jack. Oh brother, was she in deep. Way over her head deep, with no way out in sight. And she felt strangely comforted by that thought. As Jack finally returned with her pain relievers, she bravely raised her eyes to his and held tight.

"Sooo..."

"So..."

"You really kicked his ass."

"Yes, Sir."

A long pause. A heavy sigh.

"Sir."

She smiled. "Jack."

He blinked. "Just like that?"

"Since when is anything ever that easy for us?"

"That's kinda what I'm saying."

Another pause. But with a completely different tension filling the air.

"So..."

"So..."

"Eight years. That's a long time... waiting."

"Wanting."

He blinked again. This woman was full of surprises. He smiled.

"And now?"

"Now... I can't imagine wanting anything else. Or anyone."

"Really?" She laughed. It almost sounded like music. "But what about...you know, duty, honor, Air Force regulations..."

"I don't know. And right now, frankly my dear, I just don't give a damn." She scooted closer to him. "Right now, all I want to think about is... is right now." She closed the final distance between them, pressing her lips to his, eyes still locked together.

There was nothing tentative in her touch. He moved his hands to cup her face, returning her touch with equal confidence. She gasped as his tongue touched her lips, and he seized the opportunity to thrust farther in. She welcomed the invasion, matching him thrust for thrust, stroke for stroke. Jack was the one to pull back abruptly.

"Damn, woman, give a guy some warning, would you?"

Sam chuckled softly. "I thought I did."

"Uh-uh. Not even close." He took a couple of deep breaths, trying to maintain control. "Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't want this, but... Sam, are you sure?"

She smiled, all the love she held for this man shining through and almost knocking him on his ass. "The funny thing is, I had already figured it out even before Grace showed up."

"Oh, really?" He sounded skeptical.

"Well, it was about twelve hours before she arrived, so I didn't quite have time to do anything about it... but... I've been thinking about it a lot. Lately. I think I knew all along that I was making a mistake. And I was just finally coming to terms with that, and I knew it was time to call things off with Pete. I shouldn't have even let it get that far."

Jack didn't say anything, but he didn't need to. Sam knew. "I'm so sorry I hurt you. I never meant to, I didn't mean to hurt anyone... Jack... I lost hope. Can you understand that?"

"Yeah," he spoke gruffly. "Felt the same way when you showed me that ring."

Sam closed her eyes. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

"It's over now," he acknowledged. He pulled her closer in his arms.

"No, Jack, it's just beginning."

He smiled into her hair. Standing, he took her hand and pulled her up, leading her back to his bedroom.

"I love you, you know,' he told her with hoarse voice.

"I know. I love you, too. I always have, you know."

He smiled. "Yeah, I know."

He dipped his head down to kiss her again as they continued into the bedroom. Their The world outside of them ceased to exist. At last they were just Jack and Sam. They were two people who shared a bond forged in battle and death; now at long last ready to celebrate life and the love that had grown between them in the physical actions they had denied themselves for so long.


	8. Grace Diminishing

Chapter Eight

Grace Diminishing

Samantha sighed in contentment as she tightened her arms around Jack. She had never before felt so completely at peace. Jack softly kissed her forehead as he returned the embrace. She nestled her head a little closer to him as she drifted slowly towards unconsciousness.

A sudden shriek of terror rang out from Grace, abruptly jerking Sam and Jack fully awake. As they bolted up out of the bed, Jack threw a wry look towards Sam. "Welcome to the joys of parenthood." He tossed her a robe as her dragged a pair of sweatpants on.

They were out the door and in Grace's room in seconds. The little girl was still screaming, eyes wide in terror, sitting upright in the bed with her legs drawn defensively to her chest. Sam took the shaking girl into her arms, and Grace quieted immediately. Jack moved beside them and began rubbing the child's back in slow, soothing circles.

"I woke up... and everything was gone!" Grace's voice was trembling.

"I'm sure it was just a bad dream," Jack assured her.

"No! It wasn't a dream! It was real! I was... I was back-back there... where everything was destroyed by the Wraith and everyone was killed... I was all alone... It was real, I swear!!" Grace ended with a sob, burying her face back into Sam's shoulder.

Sam looked up at Jack with worried eyes. He frowned, his brow creasing and his eyes narrowing. He shook his head. Not now. He continued massaging the girl's back until her sobs quieted once again. It took a while, but they finally soothed her back to sleep. Samantha laid her down with great care, tucking the blankets around her. She caressed her cheek gently before dropping a light kiss to her forehead. At long last, they tiptoed from the room, leaving the door ajar so they could hear her if she needed them again.

Jack released a heavy sigh and scrubbed his hands across his face. He turned to Sam and draped an arm across her shoulders, preparing to lead her back to bed. They were stopped by a rather loud knock at the door.

"Oh, good grief, what now?" Sam's grumble drew a low chuckle from Jack. "You get the door, I'll get some clothes on and start the coffee."

"You reading my mind again, Carter?" The persistent guest banged again. Jack rushed to the front door, eager to keep whoever it was from waking the child they had just got back to sleep. He opened the door to find Daniel Jackson and a very frightened-looking Janet Fraiser.

"We've got a problem, Jack," Daniel announced as he barged through, pulling Janet with him.

"Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" Daniel frowned harder, looking very Yoda-like for a moment. "Let me take a wild guess here: Doc woke up screaming, terrified, and convinced she was back in that other earth." Jack drew a perverse pleasure in watching the younger man make fish impressions.

"Um... yeah, that's, uh, that's pretty much exactly what happened. How did you-"

"Because Grace just did the exact same thing," Samantha Carter announced as she emerged from the kitchen, bearing a couple of steaming mugs of of the world's fastest coffee, passing one to Jack. Daniel did a double take as his jaw bounced off the floor a couple of times. Jack, however, just threw a wolfish grin at the woman wearing his jersey... and apparently little else.

"Oh... Sam. Hi. I didn't.. I mean, I ... I had no idea you and Jack... ummmm..."

Sam blushed slightly as she offered the other mug to Daniel. She returned to the kitchen briefly and came back with two more mugs. She set them on the coffee table as she took a seat on the couch, tucking her legs beneath her. "Are you really that surprised, Daniel?"

"Well, umm.. no, I guess not. I just... I wasn't expecting..."

Jack laughed. "Neither were we."

Sam turned to Janet. "Are you okay?"

Janet had sunk into the large chair by the fireplace and curled herself as tightly as she could. "I suppose I should have known better than to think we could escape, that we could survive here."

"Do you think this another sort of entrophic cascade failure?"

"I suppose... I'm really not an expert on quantum theories, you know. But this is different from what we saw before. I... was... I wasn't here..."

When she couldn't continue, Daniel picked up where she left off. Sam noted that he still hadn't let go of Janet's hand, his thumb absently stroking the inside of her wrist.

"One minute she was there in my arms, the next she was just... gone. I mean, I, uh, I blinked and she'd-she'd vanished. A couple minutes later, she was back... and screaming her head off in absolute horror. When I finally got her to calm down, she insisted that she see Grace."

Janet's head snapped up at this mention of the child. "Is she... is she okay? Is she still here?"

"Yeah, she's fine. She woke up screaming, like you, kept insisting she woke up back... there...eventually we calmed her down enough she went back to sleep. It was about two minutes after that when Daniel started to pound the door in." Sam stood up and took Janet's free hand. "Come on, you can see for yourself."

She led the shocked doctor to Grace's room. When she saw for herself that Grace was indeed safe and sound, Sam could see the tension finally began to drain from her friend. She led her back to the living room. Daniel was back at her side before she reached the chair.

"Feel better now?" Janet nodded and wrapped her arms around him. He looked back to see amused expressions passing between Sam and Jack. "What?"

"Nothing, Daniel. Nothing at all." Jack returned his gaze to Sam. "So, what do you make of this?"

Sam's eyes popped out a bit and she shook her head. "I'm not sure... this is definitely not the same thing we were dealing with when the- the, umm... the other Samantha Carter came through the quantum mirror. I don't know if it's because Janet and Grace came through this other quantum device, or if it's another nasty side effect of umm... of AU travel."

Jack quirked an eyebrow at her. "'AU travel?'"

"You have a better term for it?"

"No." He shook his head. More initials to forget. "Well, figure it out somehow. Can't exactly have our daughter and the doc bouncing out of reality left and right, can we?"

"I'm going to have to see this quantum device, sir. I don't have enough information to do anything more than theorize... and I could do that for years without coming any closer to solving the problem."

"Of that I have no doubt." Jack again scrubbed his hands across his eyes. "I'll call the base, check on the status of that sandstorm." Jack marched out of the living room. Daniel and Janet still hadn't extracted themselves from their cozy embrace. Sam almost blushed as she witnessed their intimate, unspoken conversation.

Just as she was about to go hunt down Jack, he reappeared, shaking his head. "No go. Still a pretty nasty storm out there, but it's starting to show signs of weakening. I think we need to turn in and get some shuteye. I have a spare guestroom if you wanna crash here?"

Jack's offer surprised all of his houseguests. It was Janet who answered. "Thank you, sir. I'd really appreciate staying close to Grace tonight."

Jack nodded. "I'll let Daniel show you around... You know where everything is, Spacemonkey." Jack gathered up the empty coffee mugs and dropped them into the dishwasher. "I suggest we call it a night..." Jack paused, trying to decide how best to ask Sam to come back with him when she surprised him again. She had followed him to the kitchen, and when he turned around after locking the dishwasher closed, he found himself being wrapped in her arms.

"Coming to bed?" she asked. He stared at her a moment, reveling in the change in her, from the proper second-in-command he'd worked with for so long, to this lovely, seductive, loving woman wrapped in his arms now. He kissed her deeply. Then he took her hand and led her back to his bed.


	9. Graceless Exit

Chapter Nine

Graceless Exit

Sam and Jack returned to the bedroom in silence. Sam sat on one side of the bed and removed Jack's borrowed jersey, listening to the soft sounds of Jack shedding his own hastily donned attire. As he slipped beneath the blankets, Sam hesitated. She laid down, but not too close, laying on her back and turned away from him.

After a long moment of silence, she felt Jack shifting beside her. She could barely see him in the darkness, but she knew he was now facing her. One warm hand reached out to her, fingers slowly combing through her hair. "You gonna tell me what's bothering you?" His voice was hushed, but filled with concern.

Samantha lay there trying to formulate the words to express her emotions, but she hadn't sorted those feelings out enough yet to articulate them. "Sam?" She sighed in frustration. His hand strayed down to cup her cheek, and she felt him gently turning her head to meet his. She looked at him, still helpless to tell him all that was resting so heavily in her heart. She heard Jack echo her sigh of frustration.

"You can't keep shutting me out, you know. Not here. Out there... On the base... in the field... on duty... That's one thing. You can go right ahead and shut me out anytime you need to. But not here. Not in my bed. Not now."

Sam felt tears welling up and she tried to blink them back. This wasn't about holding back or shutting out. She just couldn't seem to find the words. She did the only thing she could think of. She pulled his face down and kissed him, hard and fierce, with all the pent up emotions she couldn't verbally express. Jack pulled back just enough to see her eyes clearly. She could just make out his soft smile.

"Well... I guess that's not exactly... shut out... is it?" A tear slipped down her cheek, and Jack caught it with his thumb.

"We're going to lose her." Sam's voice was so quiet he wouldn't have heard if he hadn't been a hair's breadth from her mouth. Her words, the fear that coursed through her voice shook him to the core. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her as close as humanly possible.

"No." His answer was short and decisive. If the power of will alone could change fate, Jack O'Neill would have ruled the universe in that moment.

"I... I've just... I can't explain how, but... I've become so... so completely attached to her, Jack. How could she possibly come to mean so much in such a short time?"

"She's our daughter." Jack's voice was gruff with emotion, too. "It's as simple as that."

"There's nothing simple about it, Jack, and you know it. She isn't even from this reality, for cryin' out loud! How could we have been so arrogant to think that people can just swap realities like that without consequence? She... she doesn't belong here. She isn't... she wasn't... she wasn't meant to be... not for us. Can't you see that?"

"No!" Jack's refusal was sharp and adamant. "If she wasn't supposed to be here, she wouldn't be. Sam... can't you see? That little girl is every chance we almost lost forever. She is the daughter we should have had four years ago."

"P3R-118." Sam's voice wasn't even a whisper now. "I... Jack... I never told you..."

"You didn't have to. I'm damned well aware of... of what you had to do... when we returned."

"You are?"

"Standard operating procedure, isn't it?'

Sam nodded mutely. Just a few capsules were all it took to guarantee no unplanned consequences resulting from their actions as Jona and Thera. "I almost couldn't do it... but I couldn't see any other way around it... It killed me, Jack. Something in me died with her..." She buried her head in his shoulder, unable to hold back the tears any longer.

"I know, Sam. I know. Me too."

The alarm started screaming long before she was ready to awaken. Before Sam could summon the energy to shut it off, a heavy arm draped across her lifted and pounded the little machine into silent submission. Suddenly she was wide-awake, alert, and very much aware of her surroundings.

Crap. She'd gone and done the one thing she had fought hardest to avoid since joining the SGC. She'd slept with her CO. And not just her CO now, the frigging Base Commander. You certainly don't do anything halfway, do you, Carter, she chided herself.

The object of her musings wrapped his arms around her again, his head nestled in the crook of her neck. She felt warm lips moving against the sensitive skin there, sending chills racing down her spine.

"Mmmmm... Do we gotta get up? I say we just spend the day in bed..." Jack's voice was groggy and muffled and far too sexy. Sam moved restlessly against him, eliciting another groan.

"We really should get up... Sir."

Well. That did the trick. She could feel him stiffening instantly in response to her formal address. He rolled away and sat up, dragging a hand across his face and through his short silver hair. He threw a wry glance at Sam before getting out of bed. She laughed.

She couldn't help herself feasting upon the sight of his nude form padding around as he gathered his clothes. When he disappeared into the bathroom, Sam finally dragged herself out of his warm bed. She dressed in her clothes of yesterday, then tapped hesitantly on the bathroom door. She heard the water start up just before he poked his head out.

"I'm.. I'm just gonna run home... get some fresh clothes."

"Take the truck. Keys are on the dresser." At her confused frown, he reminded her, "Your car's still over at the restaurant, remember?"

Her eyes widened as memories of the awful confrontation with her now ex-fiancé flooded her. She reached up to her eye, tentatively testing how sore it was, and winced in pain. She looked back to Jack, who offered her a warm smile.

"Doesn't look too bad. I've definitely seen you with much worse. That guy really can't hit for squat, can he?" That won him a soft chuckle as Sam shook her head. "Go get your clothes and hurry back. I'll check in with the base soon as I'm done in here." He dipped his head down and stole a kiss from her before disappearing back into the bathroom.

Sam grabbed Jack's keys from the dresser as she left the bedroom. She peeked in on Grace as she passed her room, and was relieved that the girl was still asleep. Not too surprising considering the sun wasn't up yet. As she turned back down the hall, she caught a whiff of the distinctive aroma of brewing coffee, and it brought a smile to her face. Daniel must be up.

She turned into the kitchen and found both Daniel and Janet sitting at the dining table with mugs of coffee. Janet waved, Daniel almost nodded. Must be his first cup, Sam mused. "Good morning," she said softly. "Been up long?"

"Didn't sleep much," Janet told her. "You?"

"A little... eventually." Sam dug through Jack's cabinets until she found a good travel mug. She filled it with coffee and sat down with Janet and Daniel. "Any more... episodes last night?"

Janet shook her head. "Only the one... I could almost convince myself that I imagined it... if Grace hadn't experienced the same thing."

Daniel suddenly turned to her with bloodshot eyes. "You guys... you are gonna be able to stop this, right Sam? 'Cause I really don't think I could... I mean... how could...how could any of us... go back... I mean... to the way things were... before..." Yup, definitely his first cup. His head dropped again and he sipped more of his coffee.

"I don't know, Daniel. I really don't have any answers right now. Just more and more questions." She stood up. "I've gotta run back to my place for some clothes. I'll be back in just a bit."

Janet nodded. "We'll keep an ear out for Grace till Jack's up."

"He's up. He's just getting a shower in."

"Oh. That's good. We'll need to get back and check in with Cassie before we head out to the base."

"Of course. I won't be long." Sam started to leave, but paused in the front doorway. "Janet? I think we should bring Grace with us to the base... just in case... you know?"

"I was just thinking the same thing, " Janet called back. "Great minds think alike?"

"Yeah, and so do we." Sam laughed as she walked out the door.

Sam pulled up to her house in Jack's truck just as the sun was starting to rise over the tall Rocky Mountain Peaks. She frowned darkly when she saw that she had an unwelcome visitor waiting for her. Just how the hell had that sonofabitch gotten out of custody so fast? Sam grabbed her cell phone and dialed Jack's house.

"O'Neill."

"It's me. He's here."

"Your house?"

"Waiting for me. I'm just pulling up now."

"I'm on my way with reinforcements. Just stay in the truck, Carter."

"Fat chance." She disconnected the call before he had a chance to make that an order. She opened the truck and climbed out.

"Good God, you couldn't wait five minutes to jump him, could you Samantha? What the hell kind of slut are you??" A sneering, battered shell of the man she thought she had cared so deeply for stood looming in Sam's dark porch. He made no move towards her, only assuming what she supposed was his intimidating-cop stance, though she really didn't feel intimidated. Annoyed? Yes. Angry, furious, even? Hell yeah! But intimidated? Sam laughed out loud.

"What the hell is so damn funny?" he demanded.

"You really do have a lot of nerve showing up here after last night."

"Last night was a mistake, Samantha."

"Yes, it was. And I'm sorry, but so was my involvement with you. I am truly sorry that I hurt you like that. But I am not, I repeat NOT going to have anything further to do with you. Ever."

"I'm really sorry to hear that, Samantha. I came here to offer you one last chance."

Sam's eyes widened in disbelief. "It's over, Pete. Don't you get it? It was never meant to be."

"Oh, but you're wrong, Samantha. We are meant to be. You are my destiny and I am yours. I'm just sorry it's going to take such drastic action for you to see that."

Sam frowned, her eyes darkening at his implied threat. "Drastic? Pete, please, don't do anything stupider than what you did last night."

"You're right, last night was stupid. But I've had some time to think now. Cool down. And I know now exactly what it will take for you to realize that you are mine." Almost as if on cue, Jack pulled up in Daniel's car. Sam watched in horror as Pete pulled out a gun and fired at Jack's head.

"JACK!!!!!!!!" She screamed. Jack ducked down before he even saw the gun. He felt a bullet graze his forehead as he dropped and brought a hand up to the wound. Not too bad. He pulled out his own weapon as he laid across the two front seats. Before he could try to aim, he heard shots ring out in Sam's direction and back. That God damned mother fucking sonofabitch was firing at Sam. Shit!

He rose up just in time to see the slime ball get hit once, twice, three times, dropping his weapon and crumpling into a heap on the floorboards. He looked over to Samantha, who was standing wide-open in the center of her yard. She appeared to be completely unscathed. Thank God. And damn, but she looked good!

Jack got out of the car, shaking glass off. He walked across the grass to Sam, who still hadn't lowered her weapon. He reached a hand out and gently guided her hands down. Her eyes were still locked on the puddle of a man on her porch. Jack relieved her of her gun, his other hand trailing up her arm, her neck, to cup her cheek and turn her head towards him, still keeping a wary eye of his own on the fallen wretch. He heard distant sirens gradually growing closer.

"Hey... It's over now. You can relax." Sam drew in a shuddered breath. She blinked a couple of times, and he could feel a slight tremble run through her as the adrenaline slowly subsided. Jack stroked her face absently with his thumb. "You did great, Sam. I'm impressed."

"He was going to kill you."

"And thanks to you, he didn't succeed. I never even saw his gun, just heard your warning and dropped."

Sam reached up to him then, wiping a trickle of blood from his forehead. Behind them, the local authorities were finally arriving. "Looks like we weren't quite fast enough." Sam's voice was steadying slowly. Jack reached up with his own hand and rubbed the wound lightly. "Probably looks worse than it feels. I know how much your head likes to bleed."

"Hey, this is only head wound number two hundred sixty-" A flicker of movement caught their eyes, and he turned just in time to see Pete Shanahan raising his gun and pointing it at Sam. Before he had time to raise Sam's gun, still in his hand, the gunshot rang out.


	10. Grace in Proceeding

Chapter Ten

Grace in Proceeding

The world turned black around Jack O'Neill as he watched the deranged man raise his gun to fire at Sam. He was reacting without thought, but he was too slow, way too slow, the shot rang out...from behind them.

Even as his stomach plummeted, Jack watched as the bullet nailed Shanahan between the eyes, a small hole leaking blood into eyes frozen in rage. He dropped back down to the ground, lifeless and ragged. Swallowing his heart back down, Jack turned to Sam, naked relief in his eyes.

The same detective that had spoken with Jack at the restaurant the night before approached them. It was his well-timed shot that had spared Sam's life. Jack greeted him with a grateful handshake. "General O'Neill, I came when I heard the call over my radio... He must've pulled every string he's ever gotten hold of to get out last night. Had the Governor himself demanding we let him out immediately." The young man turned to look at the fallen officer, shaking his head sadly. More squad cars had arrived, along with an ambulance. The paramedics ran to the porch, only to back away when they realized they were too late.

"Glad you made it, Detective. That was a damn good shot." From the corner of his eye, his saw Sam wince and shudder. "I know you're gonna have a ton of paperwork for us on this, but I'm afraid it's going to have to wait until tomorrow, at least. We have urgent business to attend at the base." The detective nodded and left to confer with his fellow officers. "You okay, Carter?"

She was still staring at the corpse lying in front of her door. Jack draped an arm across her shoulders and led her away from the yard. "Sam?"

"I'm fine." She closed her eyes and shook her head, trying to remove the ghastly image. She opened them again and looked at Jack "Really. I'm okay. It was just--it's a lot to process, you know?"

Jack nodded. They reached his truck and he looked back to Daniel's car. "Think he's gonna be mad?"

"What's a little broken glass and a couple of bullet holes between friends?" As she climbed into Jack's truck, she felt the last vestiges of adrenaline drain out of her. The beginnings of shock were setting in. She closed her eyes and tried to focus on her breathing, slow and easy. In... out... in... out...

She felt Jack's warm hand cover hers and opened her eyes. She turned to meet his gaze, and as they connected, she was filled with sudden, unexpected warmth. Her eyes widened in surprise, her mouth forming a little "oh". When Jack's eyes flickered down to her lips, it took every ounce of her weakened willpower to keep herself from feverishly kissing him in full view of most of the Colorado Springs PD.

When Jack looked back into her eyes, the light twinkle she saw told her he'd had the same thought. He shook his head with a smile and finally started up the truck. Without another look behind them, Jack drove Samantha away from the scene of the crime.

Sam waited until they were a few blocks away before speaking again. "So much for the change of clothes."

Jack's eyes darted over to her. "Don't worry, you'll be in good old fashioned BDU's in no time." Sam chuckled softly, bringing a smile to Jack's face. "I went ahead and arranged for the MP's to give Daniel and Janet a lift. They should be at the base by the time we get there. They're bringing Grace and Cassie."

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"For... everything." She scooted a little closer to him and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Oh. Well. Yeah. Anytime." He dropped a soft kiss to the top of her head. Then he cleared his throat; they were almost in sight of the entrance into the mountain. Sam raised her head with a sigh. From heaven-sent dream last night into hellish nightmare this morning... what more was awaiting them deep within the belly of the mountain that was swallowing them?

Sam was scribbling furiously on a notepad when Jack found her in her lab. She paused, her brow creasing as she absently chewed the end of her pen. Jack smiled at the sight before knocking lightly on the door. "Knock, knock."

Sam looked up, startled. When she saw Jack, she broke into a stunning grin. "Who's there?"

"Butch, Jimmy, and Joe."

Sam tried to swallow a laugh. "Butch, Jimmy, and Joe who?"

Jack walked into the room and bent down to whisper in Sam's ear, his warm breath sending tingles to all the right places. "Butch your arms around me, Jimmy a kiss, and let's Joe places." Sam laughed loud and long. Jack stood back up and set a plate full of chocolate cake on top of her notebook.

"You haven't come out since we got here, so I was guessing you haven't eaten yet?"

"You know me too well." Sam traded her pen for the fork. "So how's the weather over on '866?" she asked before taking a bite.

"Clearing. Looks like we should be able to head out this afternoon. Tentatively scheduled for 18:00."

Sam looked up sharply. "We?"

"If any of those Wraith made it through, they're going to be one hell of a threat. I'm going to need as much first-hand information as I can get." Sam was frowning pensively, so Jack continued. "Besides... there is way too much at stake here for me to sit around doing nothing to help save our friend and our daughter."

"Sir... this is a serious conflict of interest... maybe we should both-"

"Don't you dare feed me some line about letting someone else do our job for us, Carter. Believe me, I'm well aware of the risks. But there's no one, not one damned person in the entire universe, I would trust more. This is our responsibility. Ours alone."

Sam closed her eyes. He was right, and she knew it. And while she was still worried, she felt unbridled relief coursing through her. She looked back up at Jack, her heart in her eyes. "You sure we can do this?"

Jack smiled. "You and me? We can handle anything together."

"Together." Sam smiled. "We do make a good team."

"The best." Jack shoved his hands in his pockets to keep them from finding their way into her hair. "So are you gonna finish that cake or do I have to feed you?"

An untimely knock interrupted their cozy little tête-à-tête. Without looking up, they answered in unison, "Come in Daniel!"

"Hey guys. Umm... am I-am I interrupting anything?"

"Nah." Jack was the first to finally break and look at Daniel. "We're on duty, ya know. What's up?"

"Oh... well, I, uh, just left the infirmary... Janet and Dr. Warner are running every test they can think of and then some. Hasn't told them anything, yet, but, umm...But at least she's doing something."

"How's Grace doing?"

"Kicking Cassie's butt in poker. Wonder who taught her how to play," he finished with a pointed look at Jack.

Jack raised his eyebrows over innocent eyes. "Don't look at me like that!" Sam giggled. "Ah-ahh, that's enough of that!" She laughed harder. Jack tried to maintain his best General's glare, but it was a losing battle in the face of a delighted Samantha. He finally gave up with a shake of the head, allowing the smile to take over his features. He heard Daniel chuckling, too. "Well, it's good to see you in a better mood, at least."

"Sorry, guys. It was a lot to take in, you know?"

Sam nodded in agreement. "I know exactly how you feel."

"Oh! God, I can't believe I forgot-what happened this morning... You okay, Sam? I mean, really?"

Sam's smile turned sad. "I'm fine. Well, as fine as can be, all things considered." She shook her head. "I still can't believe he went so far off the deep end like that. I never imagined..."

"Who would? God, the guy must've been a hell of a loose cannon before he even met you."

"One wave short of a shipwreck," Jack growled.

"Can we not talk about this now? I'm trying to enjoy some cake here, guys."

"Sorry, Sam. I'm just glad you're okay."

"I'm fine Daniel." Sam took another bite of cake as Daniel continued to stand there with a rather blank expression.

"Daniel? Something else you need to discuss?" Jack was suddenly impatient for the younger man to leave. There was one last thing he needed to discuss with Samantha before they went on this next, crucial mission. Daniel looked back and forth between Sam and Jack, the proverbial light dawning on him.

"Right... sorry. I, uh, I just... well, I don't think Janet wants me back in the infirmary for a while, and, uh... I, um..."

"Daniel, did you get any sleep last night?" Sam's question prompted a convenient yawn out of Daniel.

Jack slapped him across the back and led him towards the door. "Right. Go take a nap, Danny-boy. We're heading out to '866 at 18:00. Gives you a good three or four hours."

Daniel opened his mouth to reply, but it was distorted by another yawn. He settled for a nod as Jack shut the door behind him.

"I thought he'd never leave!" Jack stalked back over to Sam, who had just finished her piece of cake. He reached up and wiped the corner of her mouth with his thumb. "Icing," he explained as he stuck the tip of his thumb in his mouth. Sam giggled again. "Would you stop with the damned giggling? It's too damned sexy, and we're on duty, dammit!!"

Sam covered her mouth with her hand as she regained her composure. Jack removed her hand from her mouth, but kept it clasped in his warm grip.

"Samantha..." He paused, uncertain for a moment how to tell her what was suddenly weighing very heavy on his heart. He took a deep breath and plunged ahead. "I had a talk with the President."

"About what?" Jack looked down at their clenched hands. "Oh."

"And, he... Well, he said, and I quote, 'It's about damned time! I was this close to ordering you two to just do it and get it over with!'" Jack got a kick out of watching her eyes pop out of her head and back in. "Soo... he's overnighting us his Official Seal of Approval. I know this is probably way too soon after... after everything, but I don't want us to go out there... wondering... and maybe coming home regretting..."

He dug into his pocket and pulled out a very small, very old, blue velvet box. He opened it to reveal a stunning antique ring, made of a modest emerald surrounded by tiny sapphires. Samantha gasped, her eyes wide.

"Oh my God, Jack!" She looked back up to him, her eyes filling with tears. She swallowed them back and smiled, all of her love spilling out and washing over him.

"Marry me, Samantha."

"Of course, Jack."

He took the ring out and slipped it on her finger, then turned her hand over and pressed his lips to her palm. Sam slid her hand around to the back of his head and pulled him close, until scarcely a breath remained between them.

"Love you."

"More than life," he replied as he closed the final distance between them and claimed her lips in a lingering kiss.


	11. For the Sake of Grace

Chapter Eleven

For the Sake of Grace

Janet knocked on the door of Sam's lab. She heard a muffled "Come in," and she opened the door to find Sam sitting with her head buried in folded arms.

"Sam? What's wrong?"

Sam lifted her head and looked at Janet with weary eyes. "Every theory I can come up with has more loopholes than the American legal system. Nothing seems to be making any sense."

"I know how you feel. Dr Werner and I ran every test under the sun on Grace and me, but..." She shook her head. "There were no answers there, either. I just hope you and Daniel can come up with something when we get to the planet."

Sam sighed as she glanced at her watch. "I guess it's just about time to gear up, isn't it?" As Sam had lifted her arm, Janet noticed something on her hand.

"Sam? Something you want to tell me?"

Sam frowned, confused, and Janet pointed at the ring on her left hand. Sam's eyes bulged out for a second, then she broke into an earsplitting grin.

"Oh! That... um... that's from Jack. He, uh... he proposed."

"Really? Wow. It's beautiful."

"He said it was his grandmother's"

"Wow. Again... I mean, really, it's great. Really great, Sam... but... well, what about--"

"The regs? He called the President, got Official Permission."

"Wow." Janet seemed to mull this over for a moment before finally giving Sam a smile of unabashed approval. "Congratulations. It's about time!"

Sam laughed. "Funny, the President said the same thing."

Janet chuckled, too. "No one deserves to be happy more than the two of you. I'm sure Grace will be thrilled, too."

"Grace! I should go see her before we go."

"I believe she and Cassie went to the mess hall for dinner. Along with Siler... to keep them out of trouble."

Sam chuckled again as she stood up, rolling her head around to work out the kinks.

"I'm going to try to track down Daniel. I had to throw him out of the infirmary earlier. He was so exhausted, he kept knocking over the trays... when he spilt Dr Werner's coffee for a fifth time, she almost killed him."

"He stopped by here earlier. He got himself ordered to bed for a nap."

"So that would be... level 25? Or his office?"

"I'll walk you there."

"Thanks Sam. And again, congratulations. I couldn't be happier for you." Janet wrapped her arms around Sam in a brief hug. Sam turned away and slipped the ring off her finger. She tucked it into the small box Jack left with her and locked it in a drawer, and then she and Janet exited the lab.

Janet waited until Sam was around the corner before knocking on the door. When she heard no response, she tested the handle and was relieved to find that he hadn't locked it. She stepped into the room and closed the door behind her.

Daniel was sprawled across the bed face down, snoring softly, a desk lamp softly glowing on the nightstand next to the single bed. Janet sat down beside him and gently shook his shoulder. Still not getting any response, she ran her hand up to the back of his head, her fingers tangled in his already mussed hair. She bent close to his ear and whispered, "Rise and shine."

Daniel's eyes flew open as he sucked in a sharp breath. His eyes darted around wildly for a moment before finally settling on the woman beside him. He released his breath in a loud huff. "It wasn't a dream."

"No, it wasn't. I'm still here."

"For a second, I thought-" Daniel's brow creased as his eyes grew dark and intense. "I won't lose you again, Janet." The emotion filling his voice took her breath away. He reached out to cup her face with both hands and drew her face close to his, their breaths mingling. "Never again," he swore as he brought his lips to hers.

It was the first time they had really kissed since she planted that mind-boggler on him after she'd first stepped through the gate. That kiss had been filled with confusion, with relief, with hope, and even with desperation, but that kiss had captured his heart. This one, however...

This kiss captured his soul, and he lost himself completely in her. He tried to burn each sensation to memory as her tongue seared past his lips to engage in teasing play with his own. He dug his fingers into her hair and pulled her impossibly closer; he heard her moan over his own racing heartbeat thundering in his ears. He could feel her heart pounding through her ribcage in time with his. They were on the verge of being completely swept away in the tide of desire that had been long ignored when Janet pulled back abruptly and stared at Daniel in breathless wonder. Daniel looked equally amazed, his blues eyes wide and bright. He made another impressive fish impersonation.

"Speechless?" Daniel shut his mouth abruptly and nodded.

Janet laughed softly. "That was-Wow!" She took a deep breath and shook her head slightly. "I mean... really... wow!" She took another breath as she fought to regain her composure. She untangled her hands from his hair and scooted back a bit. "We...we, um-we need to..." She blinked a couple times. "We need to do something."

"Yeah. Umm. What was that?"

"Mission. Um... Right, the mission back out to-um.. What's-it-called?"

"Um.. P-something-something-866. I think"

"866. Yeah that sounds right." Janet stood up and tried to smooth her hair down, quickly realizing that it was hopeless. Daniel stood up and pulled a comb out of his pocket, offering it to her. She accepted with a grateful smile.

"I, uh, I think we'd probably... uh, better not do- that again. Um.. at least, not until we-we, uh, get home..."

Janet laughed again, a sweet sound that tickled his heart. "You're probably right. In fact, it might not be a bad idea to avoid being alone together... until we get home." She finished with a bright twinkle in her eyes, and Daniel shoved tight fists into his trousers to keep from grabbing her and kissing them both senseless again.

"Guess we should go gear up, huh?"

"I suppose so. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can start looking for answers."

Daniel's features turned serious again. "I meant it, Janet. I won't lose you again."

"I'm not about to lose you again, either, Daniel," she solemnly vowed.

Sam ran into Jack-literally-just before she reached the mess hall. As they bumped, Jack reached out and grabbed her, pulling her close. "Funny running into you here," he said with a sly smile.

"On my way to see Grace before we head out."

"Me too. Shall we?" They walked side by side down the corridor, matching step naturally.

"I ran into Janet just a bit ago."

"Trust you didn't hurt her?"

"No, no, she came down to the lab. She's up waking Daniel now."

"Darn, I was really looking forward to blasting an air horn in his ear."

Sam shook her head. "Sorry, sir." She paused at the door. "She saw the ring."

"Oh. Well, it's bound to come out sooner or later, ya know."

"Ya think?" Jack smirked at her cheeky comment. "I think I'd rather wait until later... at least till we have that Official Permission Slip in our hot little hands. Not that we shouldn't tell Daniel. And Teal'c. And Cassie. If Janet doesn't beat us to it."

"And Grace."

"Yes. Definitely Grace."

Jack opened the door and let her enter first. As he stepped into the room, he was relieved to find that it wasn't covered in Jello. In fact, the room was empty, save one corner table at which Siler, Cassandra, and Grace were chatting amiably. Or rather, Grace was chatting amiably and Cassie and Siler seemed enchanted with whatever it was she was saying.

Her back was to them, though, and so she didn't see them approach. They listened to her lilting voice speak with a confidence that belied her tender age.

_"We see in someone else... something of ourselves. That's why sometimes you meet someone and you just immediately feel comfortable with each other. You feel like you've known them all you life. The reason is that they're a part of you, and you're a part of them." _

She paused to stuff a large spoonful of Fruit Loops in her mouth. A few feet behind her, Jack nudged Sam's elbow.

"Where do you think she got that idea?"

Sam looked down, smiling, a bit of pink tinting her cheeks. "It sounds like something I might have read once or twice..."

"Ahh, I see." Jack wiggled his eyebrows at her, eliciting a laugh from her. Grace looked up at the sound, turned and saw them. She dropped her spoon with a clang as she jumped up at ran to Jack, launching herself into his arms. He glanced back to Sam with a bemused smile. "Hey there kiddo," he greeted Grace. "So this is where you disappeared to. You keeping Siler out of trouble?"

Siler, who had jumped to his feet the moment he saw the General and the Colonel, started sputtering. "Sir! I-I... I was just-"

"At ease, Sergeant. " As Siler continued to shuffle a bit nervously, Jack continued, "Thanks for babysitting these two, Siler."

Cassie looked up at Jack with a frown. "We don't need a babysitter, Jack!" Her voice was filled with teenaged indignation.

"You want to try that line with SG-9?" Cassie's mouth snapped shut and she had the good sense to blush. "We're about to head out to 866. We're only scheduled to be there a couple of hours, but... in the event we stay out longer, Siler, I'll need you to get these lovely ladies some quarters here."Siler nodded.

Grace's head snapped round to Jack again, though, as soon as the numbers had left his mouth. "You're going back there! But... but what if the Wraith are out there? They'll kill you!!" Her eyes were wide with terror and Jack could feel deep trembles setting in. He sat down with her; Sam sat beside them and began rubbing the little girl's back.

"The Wraith aren't going to hurt them, Grace." It was Cassie who offered the reassurance. Grace turned around to look at the young woman.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm certain."

"Cool." This came from Jack. "Any other sages of wisdom or precognition you'd like to share with us?"

"Only that... whatever happens... it is what is meant to be. Fate is a fickle thing, and you mustn't ever let yourselves be lulled into a sense of complacency, for that feeling will never last." Everyone fell silent, captivated by words spilling from the young woman's lips with such authority. "The two of you are both blessed and cursed. Blessed in that you will always be together. No matter what fate throws at you, your destiny is to face it side by side.

"But you are cursed, too, for fate is determined to throw every obstacle possible at you, and ever more impossible obstructions will cross your path, for the bond you share has defied fate since the dawn of time. Nothing has ever been able to keep you apart, not time nor space, nor even death. You are soul mates in the truest sense."

No one spoke for a long time. Jack looked at Sam, Sam looked at Jack, and Grace stared back and forth between them. After a long, long moment of silence, Siler cleared his throat. Jack and Sam both jumped, their expressions turning guilty for a moment. Jack finally spoke.

"I guess we may as well tell him."

Sam nodded, still unable to find her voice. "Siler, Cassie," he looked down the child in his lap, "Grace... I had a conversation a little while ago with President Hayes, and with his Official Blessing, I've asked Samantha to marry me." Grace's eyes darted between them again. "She said 'Yes,' of course."

"YESSSS!!!!" Grace scrambled up as she shouted, wrapping an arm around each of them as she squeezed tight enough to choke. Cassie was beaming at them and Siler... well, Siler looked really disappointed for a split second before he too broke out in a goofy grin.

"Congratulations, Sirs. I had a feeling it was just a matter of time."

"Time, space, fate and destiny, it seems." Sam was still staring at Jack, a new level of awareness shining in her eyes. She reached across and clasped his hand. Jack returned her look with one equally intense and deeply layered. For the first time, Sam thought she could see each of those layers, almost like they were distinctly separate entities. Looking into his eyes, she thought she could see all the way back to the beginning of time, and that much debated Big Bang exploded in her heart. Sharp need choked her viciously; Sam leaned into Jack and pressed her lips to his, their eyes never wavering.

Siler cleared his throat again, and they moved apart. "Shall I take them on up to the VIP quarters now, Sir?"

Without looking away, Jack nodded. Grace reached up and kissed each of their cheeks before clambering off Jack's lap.

"Hurry home, okay!! I'm missing the Simpsons, for crying out loud!" Jack and Sam both laughed at Grace's complaint.

"Definitely my daughter, huh?"

"Definitely." Grace left the room giggling, Cassie and Siler following and trying to hold back laughter that spilled out just before the door closed. Jack pulled Sam up and into his arms.

"You ready for this?"

"Ready for whatever fate throws at us? Yasureyoubetcha!" Sam's zillion-watt grin blew him away, as usual. "And you know what's more, I think we've got biggest advantage on our side."

"What's that?"

"We've finally stopped fighting ourselves, our destiny. And I think maybe... just maybe that makes us unstoppable."

Jack pulled her very close and told her, "I think maybe you're right, as usual," just before sweeping her mouth into a soul-searing kiss. Their eyes remained locked together as they vowed with their kiss to defy fate itself.


	12. Redefining Grace

Chapter Twelve

Redefining Grace

SG-1, SG-3, and SG-15 stepped through the gate and onto the sandy terrain of P3K-866. The latter two teams spread out as SG-1 stepped forward and surveyed their surroundings.

"Well, so far, so good. No nasty bad guys waiting at the gate." General O'Neill had a certain knack for stating the obvious.

Teal'c stood beside his closest friend and ally. "It is likely that the sandstorm would have obliterated any trace of the Wraith's presence."

"IF they are actually here. For now, we're assuming they are." The General turned to Major Pierce. "SG-15, you have the gate. Keep the light on for us." He turned then to the members of SG-3. "You're with us. Keep your eyes and ears open." He turned at last to Janet. "Well, doc, it looks like your trail of breadcrumbs has been blown away. Ya remember which direction?" Doctor Fraiser walked across the loose sand to the DHD and scanned the horizon in all directions. She finally raised an arm, a finger pointing towards the northeastern side of the Stargate. O'Neill nodded and the group began their slow march across the desert wasteland.

Daniel Jackson fell into stride with the doctor, sneaking furtive glances towards her, but not saying a word. The tension was thicker than the hot desert air, and every breath was a laborious task. Muscles began to burn, sweat was already beading and dripping down foreheads and backs. Guns were raised, every sense on the alert, waiting, watching, fearing. For nearly two hours they trekked through the grueling terrain, up one steep dune after another. Reaching the top of the largest dune they'd yet encountered, they came to an abrupt standstill. They stared in awe at the valley below them.

The sandstorm had blown away countless decades -- centuries? -- of blanketing sand to reveal a monument virtually untouched by time. A ring of mammoth stones circled a towering temple that appeared to be an incongruous mixture of dozens of ancient cultures. It was a five-sided pyramid crowned with a turret, which resembled an opening rosebud.

After a good long surveillance of the area, O'Neill motioned everyone onward. "Colonel Reynolds, secure the perimeter. We're gonna go open Pandora's box. You see anything move and I wanna know about it."

"Yes, Sir!" Reynolds signaled to his team and they spread out around the outside of the relics. SG1 walked through to the closest of the gargantuan rocks. Dr Jackson was immediately fascinated with a bizarre set of inscriptions surrounding the ornate base. Carter caught a glimpse of something glinting in the center of what looked like a blast score on the far corner.

"This appears to have been damaged in battle, Sir." She ran her fingers along the blackened edges then into the center, wiping off the soot. Her eyes widened in surprise. "Sir! You've got to see this!"

O'Neill jogged over to her and stared at the hole in the rock. "What?"

"This appears to be a crystal beneath a fairly thin layer of rock... it's like it was plastered on to conceal the crystal." She brushed away more of the crumbling facade, defining the edges of the crystal more clearly. She sucked in a sharp breath as she realized the magnitude of her discovery. "Sir, these things are almost entirely crystal. If these are power sources like the Goa'uld use..."

She trailed off, shaking her head in disbelief. Dr Jackson jumped into the conversation from behind them. "Jack, this looks like at least a dozen different ancient languages, and another dozen that are completely unfamiliar. This is just... it's amazing... These inscriptions may very well hold the key to unlocking the mystery of the megaliths on Earth."

"Say what?"

"Megaliths. The, uh, the giant rocks. Like we have on Earth at Stonehenge, or Easter Island, for example."

"I know what a megalith is, Daniel."

"Right. Umm... Well, uh, one of the prevailing theories now is that they were basically ancient star charts... Stellar cartography on a very large scale map."

"Daniel, if you're right," Sam interrupted, "these are somehow oriented to the stellar configurations seen from this planet. These enormous crystals must be focusing all of their combined energy into the temple. Whatever technology is in that quantum device, the power draw must be..."

"Astronomical."

"You gonna be able to decipher this?"

"Some of it, sure... some we'll probably never understand..."

"We've got a UAV making the rounds. You'll have plenty of time to work that out later. We need to get to that quantum thingy pronto." Daniel sighed in exasperation at Jack's impatience. He opened his mouth to argue, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He turned to find Janet's pleading eyes boring into him. He snapped his mouth closed, and sighed inwardly.

"Sir, when Grace and I were here, this was all completely buried in the sand. That entrance up there--" She pointed at a dark opening two thirds of the way up the monstrous temple. "That was ground level."

Sam looked around again in wonder. "How could a single sandstorm have excavated this entire area?"

"Perhaps it did not." Carter turned to find Teal'c treading behind her. "Perhaps it was a result of the quantum device." Carter frowned, her brow creasing as she contemplated the mysteries presented to her in this monstrous puzzle.

The team began the long climb up the stairs of the temple. It took nearly an hour to reach the entrance. A cool breeze washed over them from within the temple. The interior was dark, only illuminated by a shaft of light pouring in from an opening in the center of the ceiling. O'Neill and Carter entered first, followed closely by Daniel, Janet, and Teal'c. At a small signal from the General, Teal'c remained on guard at the entrance.

Four of the five interior walls were covered with inscriptions, the same outlandish combinations of languages as they had found on the megaliths. The fifth wall was smooth, with angular columns jutting out on either side. While lavishly decorated, they didn't appear at first glance to contain any similar inscriptions or symbols. It was to one of these columns that Dr Fraiser led them.

"There wasn't time for...for Sam to give me much in the way of instructions." She took a slow steadying breath before continuing. "There is a control panel within this column..." Janet placed a hand over a small inscription hidden in the corner where the column met the wall. The façade of the column slid into the wall soundlessly, revealing a metallic panel covered with crystals of every color, of uniform size and shape. The top of each crystal was etched with a symbol.

"Nine crystals were needed to initialize," she said pointing to each one slowly. "Then seven were needed to address. Then... you just touch the wall... and you're gone. It's nothing like gate travel, Sir. It's very difficult to describe... like being everywhere and nowhere at once."

_Like sex_. The completely out of place thought made several of Jack O'Neill's brain cells explode. A gurgling choking sound made Carter turn her head sharply, just in time to catch O'Neill swallowing his tongue. And she somehow had the audacity to wink at him before turning her attention back to Dr Fraiser!

"I'm afraid that's the limit of my knowledge here," the doctor finished with a sad shake of her head.

"Jack, there has to be at least two or three dozen different languages here. I recognize some of them; this appears to be a Celtic dialect." As he spoke, his speech going faster and faster, Daniel raced back and forth around the room, almost literally bouncing off the walls. "That one looks Japanese; we've got Goa'uld and I think that may be Cherokee, and this here looks Latvian!"

"So you can read this stuff?"

"Well, some of it."

"Good. Then start reading. And get us some answers!"

"These seem to be a sort of instruction manual, but it's like they were written specifically for their given culture. The Cherokee is filled with animal imagery, the Japanese is ornamental, almost like poetry-"

"Wax philosophic later. We need useful information."

"This is more than just translations, this is some heavy duty interpretation."

"Then get to work!" Daniel stumbled back a step at Jack's harsh tone.

"Sir..." Jack turned to Carter sharply. Their eyes locked and he felt some of the mounting tension slip away. He turned back to Daniel. "Sorry, Daniel. Just... do something, okay?" O'Neill turned about face and stalked to the doorway, leaning against the wall opposite Teal'c.

"Wow. He's tense." Daniel turned his attention back to the wall.

"We all are." Sam walked back to the control panels, determined to learn everything she could about this incredible technology in the limited time she had. Daniel caught Janet staring at him. He tried to offer a smile, but couldn't even force it onto his face. "Yeah. Definitely a bit of tension here."

Daniel Jackson sat against one wall and frowned at the other. His eyes continually scrolled across the inscriptions, trying to will some sense into the archaic expressions. He had a rough translation of three sections of four languages. There was only one common theme: nothing, a Great Big Nothing at the center of Everything. He called Sam over to him.

"Maybe this'll make sense to you, Sam. I can't seem to think straight now."

"What have you got so far?"

"Well, like I started saying earlier, these writings seem geared toward a specific audience. It's all culturally subjective interpretations, for the most part; although, that wall over there seems to be mathematically based. Calculations, formulas, maybe the addressing system for the device. I'm not sure yet. I-I think this explains how it works, but it doesn't make sense to me."

"What doesn't?"

"This Latvian translation is about the clearest, I think:

_**" 'The destined bound traveler will journey through **_

_**Nothing into the center of **_

_**Everything surpassing the boundaries of this **_

_**Universe into new awareness of Existence.'"**_

"Sounds like a description of AU travel to me."

"So what is Nothing? At the center of everything??"

Sam frowned. "It sounds like the description of a black hole."

"A black hole." Daniel jumped to his feet. "You mean this thing sends people through a black hole?"

"Not just a black hole, Daniel, the black hole at the center of our galaxy. 'The center of Everything.' That could explain the enormous power requirements. It would take unimaginable energy to punch clear through a black hole. We've only just begun theorizing that it was possible. This is phenomenal... Next question is, why these... aftershocks, for lack of a better term, knocking Janet and Grace back to that other reality."

"It talks about something kind of like that...they called it 'torn from being'. The people who built this apparently created it for philosophical research, as near as I can decipher. They had the same problem... for a long time. Several generations, it seems; it was an accepted risk of travel. It was only by..." He started trailing a finger across a section of writing,"fate/accident/happenstance... someone... discovered a way to prevent this... something something... affected travelers.

_**" 'A journey to the beginning/center/everything/nothing **_

_**Without crossing the thresholds of time **_

_**Searing the boundaries of space/reality/fate **_

_**To the very edge and back to **_

_**Newly destined origins.' " **_

Carter's eyes grew to large crystalline saucers. "That's insane! I think... They're talking about traveling into the black hole and back out without crossing through the barriers of the singularity... breaking the gravitational pull of a black hole that even light cannot escape!"

"Well, apparently, travelers through this thing can escape, somehow."

"Do they say anything about the success rate of these slingshots through the black hole?" Daniel scanned the wall. "Just says... that it worked, that travelers could 'remain, survive, and thrive, anywhere, anytime.' "

"So how do we send them on this roller coaster from hell?" Jack had apparently been listening to the entire conversation. Typical.

"Well, Jack, I was just getting to that part. That wall full of math over there?" Daniel motioned to the wall Teal'c was occupying himself with. "It looks like those are the formulas needed to calculate exactly how far and how long to send them into the black hole, the exact moment to throw it into full reverse and drag them back into this reality permanently...Uh-oh... "

"What-oh Uh-oh?"

" 'If they do not return to this Reality, they will cease to exist. In any reality.'" A heavy silence fell over them for a long moment.

"Guess we'd better be sure to get it right the first time then, huh?"

"Jack... You're going to have to bring Grace back here."

"Yeah. I know." He exchanged concerned glances with Carter before turning his back on her, grabbing his radio. "O'Neill to Major Pierce. Need you to contact the SGC. We need Grace O'Neill brought to the temple. Have SG-2 and SG-20 escort her."

"Yes, Sir!"

"I'll meet them at the base of the pyramid. O'Neill out." He put his radio away and turned back to Carter. "Looks like you've got your work cut out for you. It's gonna be a good three hours before they get here with her."

"Yes, Sir." Sam swallowed hard. She turned away from him and trod slowly to the wall full of formulas. She heard him following her, and the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end.

"You okay?" His voice was soft and warm. She longed to lose herself in his arms. Instead, she busied her hands with a notepad and pencil, jotting down a few familiar characters in short, harsh strokes.

"I'm fine. As you said, Sir, a lot of work to do." Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him clench his jaw. Her own jaw ached from being held so tight as Samantha drew on every ounce of will power she had to keep her mind focused on the job at hand.

Jack didn't move away, didn't back down; neither, though, did he push the issue. He simply stood there and watched her work. He didn't murmur another word, for none were needed. Every second was precious, every moment thrusting them closer towards a destiny of infinite possibilities. With every passing heartbeat, he was grateful they were facing those possibilities together.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

Samantha Carter let loose with a stream of curses harsh enough to make Teal'c blush. Daniel came scampering to her side. "I was so sure I had it this time!"

"Easy Sam. Maybe you need to take a breather. Come back to it in a couple minutes."

"We don't have time for that! General O'Neill will be back very shortly and I've got to have this figured out-" She was stopped by a hand on her arm, Janet's.

"Sam. Daniel's right. You need a break. This is too important for mistakes. I'd rather wait a few extra minutes to get it right on the first take, wouldn't you?" Sam sighed and threw her hands up in frustration. Then she bent over, swiped up the notepad she'd been working on, and threw it at Daniel.

"Fine. See if you can make sense of this, why don't you?" She stormed away and slunk down against the wall farthest from the intrepid archaeologist.

"Colonel Carter." Of course, this just had to be the wall closest to Teal'c.

"Please, Teal'c, I've already had enough from Daniel and Janet. Don't you start in on me, too..." The big man nodded and offered her a canteen of water without a word. He waited until she had her fill and passed it back before attempting to speak again.

"Colonel, the General and the girl are very close. They should reach the entrance in a few minutes."

"I'm sorry, Teal'c. I didn't mean to bite your head off like that." She looked over to Daniel and Janet. "Theirs, either. I'm just... "

"Worried." She nodded. "We all are, Samantha. However, we all have faith in you and in Doctor Jackson. You will find the answers we seek."

"We come here looking for answers, we're given quantum mathematics equations in Goa'uld. Couldn't possibly be as simple as the cartouche on Abydos. A nice straightforward list of coordinates would be so nice right now." Sam rose to her feet once again and started stretching out tense muscles. She cautiously approached Daniel.

"Feeling better?"

"Sorry, Daniel."

"Don't worry about it." He offered her a smile and she returned it, if somewhat tensely. "I think I may have found where you got off here." He showed her the notepad pointing at a couple things he jotted down. Her eyes widened. "You translated 'square' into 'square root' here, and this should be 'greater than but not equal to'."

"Thank you Daniel." She shook her head. "I should have seen that before going ballistic."

"Ahh, you just needed a break, Sam. Everyone's entitled to a blow a gasket now and then. Better now, than then," he nodded his head towards the blank wall.

"Howdy, campers! Ya miss me?" Jack strode into the room carrying Grace in his arms.

"You can put me down now. We're there." Jack set her on her feet with great flourish, and then she ran to Sam. "So did you figure it out? Are we gonna be able to stay with you?"

Sam nodded her head, smiling brightly for the girl. "It sure looks like it. We're just finishing up some of the last calculations, and once we're sure everything is correct... you and Janet will have to go back through the quantum device. One last time."

"Yeah, I know. Alter-Dad told me." _Alter-Dad_, Jack mouthed behind her. Sam tried to choke back the giggle. "Can I see?" Sam exchanged surprised glances between Daniel and Jack before she shrugged.

"Why not?" Daniel passed the notepad over to Sam, who bent down to show Grace. She stared at it for a long moment, frowning. She looked up at Sam, then to Daniel. "Which section is this from?" Daniel took the notepad back, clasped Grace's hand and walked her over. "Don't tell me you read Goa'uld!"

"Okay. I won't tell you my Uncle Daniel taught me either."

"I.. uh, I thought he... umm... died... almost a year ago."

"I was an early learner. And a quick study." Daniel looked back to Sam and Jack.

"Somehow that doesn't surprise me." Daniel walked Grace to the pertinent section of writings, and Grace frowned, the very picture of deep concentration. From behind them, Jack pulled Samantha a little closer to him.

"She's pretty amazing, isn't she?" He spoke softly, for her ears only. She smiled, for his eyes only. "I see a lot of her mother in her."

"There's a lot of her father in her, too." Her hand wrapped around his, squeezing firmly. Jack reached out and wound his hand behind her neck, pulling her very close. He leaned his forehead against hers, their eyes matching dark whirlpools of emotion. "We are not going to lose her, Sam. Swear to God, we're not."

After several minutes, Daniel dashed back over to Jack and Sam. "You're daughter is completely amazing! She's what, four, five years old? And she reads Goa'uld as well as I can! We all know you're awfully smart Sam, but that little girl there... we're looking at a serious prodigy here."

"We were kinda thinking the same thing, Daniel." Jack walked over to Grace, who was still frowning at the inscriptions.

"She worked out a couple things I was having trouble with, too. The, um, the control panel-" he pointed to the column-filled crystal. "-It's kind of like playing a musical keyboard. The crystals are pressure sensitive; the harder you strike, the greater the resonance. The process to execute this... black-hole-sling-shot... it's much like playing a piano concerto. I'm a bit leery of doing this without any experience or practice, Jack. One bad note..."

"Then don't miss a beat, Daniel. That's an order."

"You can't just order this, Jack."

"Yeah, I know." Jack stared at Daniel for a long, tense moment.

"Sam, you should go over this again. Make sure everything's right this time." He passed the notepad back to her, and she studied it very carefully.

"Uncle Daniel, come here!" Both Jack and Daniel were at Grace's side in seconds. "See this here? Doesn't that mean... time?"

"Yes..."

"So this thing can take people back in time too?"

"What?" Grace pointed at a group of symbols. "She's right. Again," he added with a smile as he mussed Grace's hair affectionately. "This device seems to also be a means of traveling through time."

"One more reason to blow it up as soon as these two are safe."

"Jack! We can't blow this up! I mean, think of all the opportunities here!"

"I am. And frankly, Daniel, I just happen to think the average species roaming the universe, and that includes US, is nowhere near ready for this kind of technology. It's too dangerous. We're getting rid of it." His tone of voice was dark and dangerous and broke no room for argument.

Daniel only swallowed his pride and backed down when he saw Janet out of the corner of his eye, nodding in agreement with the General. He raged inwardly at the loss, but kept his expression neutral. He turned away from them all abruptly and stalked over to the control panel. Grace jumped up and followed him, notepad in hand. Sam reached over and squeezed Jack's hand briefly before turning to follow Daniel and Grace. It was almost time to take the greatest leap of faith of their lives.

As the two scientist conferred under the watchful eyes of the young prodigy, Jack stood back watching them all. Janet moved to stand beside him.

"Sir?" Jack looked down at the petite doctor. "Jack... I just wanted to say... Thank you."

"For what?"

"For everything. For giving us a second chance." Jack looked over to Grace, then Sam. He turned back to Janet. "How could I say no? It's probably the best, if strangest, thing that's ever happened to me." He looked back down and saw Janet laughing very softly.

"Same here."

"Jack, I think we're just about ready here," Daniel called out.

"I'm ready to initialize the device, Sir," his lovely second informed him.

"All right, let's get this show going!" Jack moved back to the doorway, resuming his watchful position. Janet walked Grace over near the smooth wall. Daniel and Samantha began quietly manipulating the crystals. A deep, resonating hum coming from everywhere at once began, low and strong enough to be felt to the very bones. Gradually, the volume increased, until it reached a peak just between earsplitting and mind numbing. Just when they thought the noise couldn't get any worse, the crystals in the panel joined in the chorus in atonal harmonies.

"IT WASN'T THIS LOUD LAST TIME, SIR!!" Janet shouted over the roar.

"THIS ISN'T THE SAME PROCEDURE AS YOU WENT THROUGH LAST TIME!!" Daniel shouted back, never looking away from the control panel. He continually manipulated the crystals, hands in nonstop motion. "IT'S ALMOST TIME!! YOU TWO GET READY!!" Janet scooped Grace up into her arms and reached towards the wall. "NOT YET!! ON MY MARK!!" He frowned, his brow wrinkling in heavy concentration. "ALL RIGHT! ON THREE!! TWO... ONE -"

A new howling sound suddenly reared up above the cacophony of the machinery, a sound like thousands and thousands of voices shrieking in terror and agony and fury. A dark figure rained down from overhead, then another, and another, and another. Four Wraith had descended upon the chamber from the central opening in the ceiling.

One of them stepped toward Daniel and Samantha, still at the control panel.

THOSE TWO ARE NOT MEANT TO BE HERE!!! The Wraith growled out with the voice of a thousand demons.

Jack, zat out and ready stepped between the creature and his teammates. "THAT'S NONE OF YOUR DAMNED BUSINESS!"

The creature snarled and fired a strange weapon at Jack, blowing him back into the wall, as it ran towards Daniel. Teal'c fired his staff weapon, staggering the creature but not dropping it. Teal'c dropped his staff, pulling out a zat and firing at the Wraith. He hit it once before it grabbed Daniel.

Two of the remaining Wraith ran toward Janet and Grace, drawing Sam away from the controls. The third Wraith seized the opportunity to adjust the settings and just as Samantha lunged for Grace, she, the child, Janet, and their Wraith captors all vanished.

Jack rose up from the wall just in time to see them disappear.

"NOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" The scream was torn from Jack's throat of its own volition. He ran towards the Wraith at the controls, firing his zat in several rapid bursts until the creature finally disintegrated into miniscule nothingness.

The Wraith holding Daniel had turned the archaeologist into a human shield. Jack and Teal'c stood frozen momentarily. The creature smiled, a sick, empty grin, as it reached around in front of Daniel and tore his shirt open. Daniel gasped as its hand moved over his heart. "SHOOT IT!!! JUST SHOOT IT DAMMIT!!!" Daniel's voice was filled with terror.

Jack had the advantage of being slightly behind them. He raised his zat and fired, hitting the still-open staff blast on its back. The creature was startled enough for Daniel to jerk out of its grasp; he rolled away to one side as Jack and Teal'c lit into it with a barrage of zat fire. After an impossible number of hits, it finally dematerialized.

"YOU HAVE TO GET THEM BACK DANIEL!!!" Jack shouted. Daniel scrambled back to the control panels.

"DAMN IT!! THEY'VE SCREWED WITH THE WHOLE THING... JACK, I DON'T KNOW IF I CAN!!!!" Daniel's voice was filled with panic.

"YOU BRING THEM BACK NOW DAMMIT!!!!!" Jack screamed.

"I CAN'T!! I DON'T KNOW WHERE THEY WENT... HOW LONG, HOW FAR!! JACK-I -I CAN'T BRING THEM BACK!!"

Jack howled in rage and fury. "SAM!!!!"

The sound tore at Daniel's broken heart. He stared at the crystals, his mind racing. "JACK!! WE CAN GO BACK!!

""BACK?? WHAT DO YOU MEAN BACK?!"

"IN TIME!! JUST A LITTLE WAYS, JUST BEFORE THE WRAITH CHANGED THE SETTINGS. YOU HAVE TO STOP HIM--NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS TO ME, UNDERSTAND? IF YOU CAN'T STOP HIM, WE'LL NEVER SEE JANET OR GRACE OR SAM AGAIN!!!" Daniel began to manipulate the crystals again. The world around him suddenly went into high-speed rewind. He hit the last crystal just as the Wraith grabbed him from behind.

He heard the zat blasts as Teal'c and Jack opened fire, felt their fiery energy ripping through him. The Wraith howled in fury, still trying to wrest Daniel from the controls. Several shots later and it was gone. One late shot whizzed past Daniel's head. He ducked down just in time to avoid the deadly blast. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Janet and Sam fighting two of the Wraith, while the third was approaching him, dodging and now returning fire against Jack and Teal'c. It had all the absurdity of an old west shoot-out, except there were fewer places to hide. Daniel finally freed his own zat, firing it repeatedly at the Wraith. He counted thirteen shots before it finally joined its brethren in oblivion.

Jack and Teal'c ran toward the women, but they were too late; again they disappeared when the Wraith touched the wall. Jack's hand swiped through empty air where Sam's shoulder should have been.

"DANIEL!!!!!"

"I'M ON IT!!!!!" Daniel again manipulated the crystals. "LISTEN CAREFULLY, JACK!" He paused, coughing, as his voice grew hoarse from yelling over the roar of the quantum device. "WHEN THEY START TO MATERIALIZE, YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO GRAB THEM AND PULL THEM FULLY INTO THIS REALITY! THE SECOND THEY ARE SOLID, GOT IT!! YOU'LL HAVE TO USE EVERY OUNCE OF STRENGTH YOU HAVE, EVERY THING YOU ARE, YOU HAVE TO USE TO PULL THEM HERE." He looked away from the controls to look at them directly. "YOU HAVE TO BELIEVE THAT THEY ARE MEANT TO BE HERE!!!" Teal'c nodded. Jack swallowed once, nodded, then stalked to the wall. Daniel returned his full attention to the crystals once more.

As his hands played across the crystals, he followed his own advice, focusing all of his thoughts, his energy, everything that made him Daniel Jackson, into returning his loved ones. He could feel his body tuning into the crystals before him, their once jarring tones blending into celestial harmonies. His hands moved ever faster over the crystals, his eyes glazing over. The sounds grew shockingly louder, the pitches suddenly cascading in a haunting melody as a white, hot light filled the room.


	14. There But For The Grace Of God

Chapter Fourteen

There But For The Grace Of God

As the light dissipated, the room was plunged in total darkness for a moment. The humming of the quantum machinery had grown beyond mind numbing as Daniel continued to work with the crystals. The wall itself began to shimmer, then five faint figures appeared before it: the two Wraith, Janet, Grace, and Samantha.

Teal'c grabbed Janet as soon as her form solidified. The Wraith shrieked in rage as the woman was torn from its grasp. Teal'c yanked hard on her arm, so hard she was certain her shoulder had been dislocated, and she went stumbling across the room, landing in a crumpled heap on the opposite side of the vast chamber.

Jack, meanwhile, had begun a sick tug-of-war with the Wraith holding Grace. Sam was immediately grabbed by the Wraith that had been holding Janet, and she was fighting for all she was worth. Teal'c joined Jack, each of them pulling the screaming child with all the strength they had. Sam managed to swing herself and her captor round to land a solid kick to the face of the Wraith holding Grace. It howled in rage as Jack and Teal'c wrested the child from its death-grip.

As Jack carried her over to Janet, Teal'c began firing his zat at the now empty-handed Wraith, obliterating it in three lighting-fast bursts. Jack returned to the quantum wall just as Sam and the last Wraith were beginning to dematerialize again. Once again, his hand passed right through her shoulder. He screamed her name, reaching out towards her. She was still struggling against her captor; the creature was desperately trying to grasp her skin with the lecherous openings in its palms. Jack watched Sam's duel with the Wraith in wide-eyed panic. They were flickering in and out of existence now, and he knew time was running out. He knew he had to bring her back now.

He reached out to her again as she broke free from the Wraith once more.

_Nothing can keep you apart, not time, not space, not even death. _

**_Not even the boundaries of reality itself._**

Their eyes locked and Jack's hand landed firmly on her arm. She returned his grasp and launched herself towards him as he pulled away from the Wraith with all his strength. They stumbled back, the Wraith howling in fury as Teal'c fired his zat. The creature stumbled back into the quantum wall and blinked out of existence one final time.

The temple immediately began quaking and convulsing, the noise from the device now a harsh grinding sound. Daniel stumbled back to the control panel, desperately trying to deactivate the machine.

"IT WON'T SHUT DOWN!! SOMETHING'S WRONG!!"

Grace ran to Daniels side and jerked hard on his sleeve. "I KNOW WHAT'S WRONG!"

"WHAT?!" The noise was growing louder by the second, the floor nearly bucking them up into the air now.

"THE WRAITH, IT WAS SENT INTO THE BLACK HOLE, PERMANENTLY, AND IT WAS TOO MUCH NEGATIVE SPIRITUAL ENERGY. WE HAVE TO RETURN THE BALANCE OF ENERGIES, OR ELSE THE ENTIRE GALAXY WILL BE DESTROYED-AND FAST!!!"

Daniel stared at her in shock. "HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT??"

"IT SAYS SO RIGHT OVER THERE!! DIDN'T YOU READ IT?" Grace dragged Daniel by the hand over to a section of wall right beside the control panel. "WE HAVE TO RESTORE THE BALANCE, AND THERE'S ONLY ONE WAY TO DO THAT-BY SENDING AN EQUAL AMOUNT OF POSITIVE SPIRITUAL ENERGY BACK INTO THE BLACK HOLE!"

She release Daniel's hand and staggered to Jack and Sam. "I HAVE TO GO. I LOVE YOU BOTH SO VERY MUCH! PLEASE DON'T EVER FORGET ME!" Before they had a chance to react, Grace ran towards the quantum device.

"GRACE!!!! NOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Sam screamed as she tried to catch the child, but she was too slow. She watched in horror as Grace lifted her hand to touch the wall and disappeared forever.

"NO!!!" Jack's scream joined his fiancée's.

The temple fell into dramatic silence. Sam turned on Daniel, her face twisted with pain and anger. "Do something!! You have to get her back, Daniel!"

"I'm sorry, Sam, there's nothing I can do!"

"That's bullshit!! You get her back right now, dammit!!!"

"Its impossible, Sam. I'm sorry... I'm so sorry. She's gone."

"No!!" She cried out in desperation. "There has to be something... some way..." Daniel shook his head sadly. She suddenly turned on Jack. "You promised!! You swore to me we wouldn't lose her! Damn you!!" She spun around in a circle, staring at each of them in panic. "Damn you all to hell!!" An anguished cry escaped her lips as she turned and ran out of the temple.

Jack turned to Daniel with equally anguished eyes. "Are you... are you absolutely certain-"

"I'm sorry Jack. She was... uh... 'obliterated from all reality'... um... God, Jack, I'm so sorry."

Jack shut his eyes hard and tight, a dark growl just escaping his lips. He turned and stalked out of the temple without another word. Squinting in the bright sunlight, Jack scanned the side of the temple, spotting Sam several steps down. Her knees were drawn up to her chest, her arms wrapped tightly around them. She was staring out into nothing, tears streaming down her cheeks but not even a whimper escaping her lips.

Jack slowly made his way down to her. He sat next to her, mimicking her position, not quite touching, not speaking. For a long time they sat in silence.

"After Charlie... I swore I'd never get that close again. The pain... it almost killed me."

Sam sniffed. She turned her head to look at Jack, her pain-drenched eyes piercing straight through his heart. "Oh, God, Jack..."

"Then you walked into my life, and, somehow... my heart didn't feel so heavy. I found something... something I thought I'd never have again. Hope." He saw her lips tremble, and he reached out to cup her face. "It would be very easy to give up right now, wouldn't it?" She nodded. "We can't, though. We have to go on. That's why she did it, ya know? So we could go on. Keep living. Have a chance..." He leaned over and brushed her lips with his own. "You still want that chance, don't you?"

For a long moment, she stared at him, and his heart plummeted. He was suddenly desperately afraid that their chance had been lost with Grace.

"Of course I do, Jack." He sighed in relief, only then realizing he'd been holding his breath. "It just hurts... God, I can't believe how much this hurts. We barely knew her, barely had any time with her, and now... she's gone. Forever." The tears began to fall again, and he pulled her into his arms.

"C'mere," he whispered as she buried her face in the crook of his neck. He felt her tears trickling down his skin, and he swallowed hard, choking back his own tears. He murmured nonsensically to her, his tone soothing and comforting as she rode through the tides of grief in his arms.

Back inside the temple, Daniel had just finished giving Janet an injection of morphine and was helping Janet to her feet. Her shoulder was definitely dislocated, and she cradled it close to her body. Daniel created a makeshift sling for her out of his jacket.

"I am very sorry to have hurt you, Doctor Fraiser, " Teal'c's voice was soft and gentle.

Janet smiled at him. "You saved my life, Teal'c. What's a little dislocation compared to that?" She turned back to Daniel, who was continuing to hover over her like a mother hen. "I'll be fine Daniel. The painkillers are already kicking in; I can hardly feel it."

Daniel nodded, his hand absently rubbing the small of her back. "I just wish..."

"I know. Me too." Janet blinked back the sting of tears. "I can't believe she's really gone."

"This must be at least as devastating for you as it is for Jack and Sam... I mean, you knew her all her life."

Janet nodded, unable to speak; unable to hold the tears back any longer she began to sob very quietly. Daniel very carefully pulled her into his arms. He stroked her hair, offering the only comfort and consolation he had to give. After a long while, she pulled back and looked into his eyes.

"Take me home, Daniel. I need to get the hell away from here, now." Daniel nodded and they turned to leave.

Teal'c's voice halted them. "We were to destroy this device, were we not, Daniel Jackson?"

Daniel shook his head. "With the way this thing works, I don't think blowing it up is such a good idea. God only knows what kind of impact it could have on the galaxy."

"Should we not disable it then?"

Daniel nodded again and walked over to the control panel. He stared at it in contemplation for a moment, then reached for one of the crystals, extracting it completely from the panel. He pulled out three more, and then returned to Janet's side.

"That ought to keep it from being useable. Maybe someday... Jack might let us send a team out here to study it. In the meantime, we should probably keep an eye on it. Just in case."

Teal'c nodded once, then led them out of the temple. They found Sam and Jack still embracing on the steps of the temple. Daniel cleared his throat rather loudly and they pulled apart.

"I've disabled the device, Jack. I know you probably still wanna blow it up, but I really don't think it's a good idea. I'm afraid that it may have... catastrophic results. Destroy the galaxy, that sort of thing..."

Jack stood up slowly, looking back to the entrance of the temple. "You sure it's disabled? 'Cause the last thing we need is more of those Wraith creatures coming after us."

Daniel showed him the crystals he pulled, which immediately captured Sam's interest. He passed them to her. "Without these, it won't even power up."

"We might be able to use these... somehow..." Sam spoke slowly as she turned the crystals over in her hands.

Jack was still looking up towards the entrance. He shook his head sadly, then turned his attention back to Sam. "You ready to get outta here?"

She nodded, and the group began their long journey home.


	15. Blessed By Grace

Chapter Fifteen

Blessed By Grace

The next eight days flew by in a blur. President Hayes had called Jack the very next day to inquire as to whether they had set a date. When he was told of the expedited plans, he informed Jack that he would just have to perform the wedding in the morning, as he had an important diplomatic meeting out of the country that evening.

When General O'Neill announced the upcoming nuptials, the entire universe seemed to come to a grinding halt, tilt on a strange axis, and start revolving around them. Everyone in the SGC volunteered his or her eager assistance, and in a matter of hours, it was as well organized as any off-world mission. All the trappings appropriate to an intergalactic affaire were being laid out in the Gateroom. They would marry at the foot of the Stargate; it seemed most appropriate given the history of their relationship.

It took Samantha all of six hours with Janet to find **the** dress. It was simple and elegant, no needless frills or layers of lace for Lt. Colonel Samantha Carter. The neckline dipped low in a gentle v-shape, thin spaghetti straps all that adorned the shoulders. The bodice was simple, tapering at the trim waste, the skirt flaring out slightly, with a modest train. The scalloped trim was embroidered with a simple rose pattern.

Samantha stepped into the gown and pulled it up into place, Janet behind her fastening the zipper. "Oh, Sam," she sighed, "You look stunning!"

Sam smiled, her face glowing with excitement and anticipation. She wasn't nervous in the least; she felt like she had been waiting her entire life for this moment. She reached up and absently smoothed her hair just before Janet slipped the headdress on her.

"Don't muss it, we spent too long getting it right!"

"Amazing how long it took to style such short hair, isn't it?"

Janet nodded in agreement as she walked round to stand in front of Sam. "Only a couple things missing now." She picked up a small box that had been sitting on the table near the mirror Sam was standing beside. As she opened it, Sam gasped. Inside lay a choker necklace made of a simple gold knot work chain with a single large sapphire of a pale blue shade that matched her eyes perfectly.

"It was my great grandmother's." Janet paused, frowning for a moment. "Well, actually, technically, it was... um, 'your' Janet's great grandmother's. But, uh, I'm... I'm sure she would want you to wear it."

"And who would know that better than you?" Sam wrapped Janet in a fierce embrace. "As strange as this is, I'm so very glad to have you back in my life, Janet. I was so lost without you."

"If you don't stop, you're going to make me cry!"

"Can't have that. If you start, I'm gonna lose it, too!" They laughed together as they moved apart.

"So...we have something old, borrowed, and blue. What about something new?"

Sam reached up to her ear, a lovely diamond teardrop hanging from each lobe. "Jack gave me these last night. And this," she added, picking up a small white rosebud. She closed her eyes, inhaling its sweet fragrance deeply.

_"Less than twelve hours." He tucked the rose behind her ear. _

_"Eleven hours, twenty-one minutes-" He silenced her with a kiss. She moaned into him, pressing her body close to his. _

_Jack pulled back abruptly, his eyes darkly clouded with passion. "God, I want you, woman." She kissed him again, hard and fast, before tearing herself away from his arms. _

_"We've waited this long... we can manage another twelve hours." She took several deep gulps of air, moving as far from him as the small quarters allowed. "I love you." _

_He grinned. "You took the words right out of my mouth." He winked. "Musta been while you were kissing me." He pulled something out of his pocket, a small black box. She felt her heart melting all over again as he crossed the room to her. He handed her the box, and she opened it, her eyes wide and bright with delight._

_" " _

_She was stunned speechless. Jack captured her open lips in a sweet kiss. He kept it brief, carefully extracting himself from her arms, walking to the door. He turned back to her before he opened it. _

_"I'll see you in the morning." Samantha was certain she'd never seen such happiness light his face. She would treasure this moment deep in her heart, for all her days to come. Before he could leave, she ran back into his arms for one last kiss, one that was hot and hard, tender and intimate, demanding and passionate, a kiss that was the pure magic of love._

_Magic_. Jack shook his head, trying to clear the memory so he could concentrate on the words spilling out of Daniel's mouth.

"Have you heard anything I just said?"

"Something about penguins?"

"The penguin suit... never mind. Where'd you go?"

Jack just grinned.

"Never mind. Again." Daniel cleared his throat as he untied his bow tie for the umpteenth time. "Anyway, Jacob just arrived. Ran into him in the commissary. Said he wanted to talk to you before he goes to see Sam."

"Oh, for the love of-Thor!!" Everyone's favorite Asgard had just beamed into Jack's office.

"General O'Neill, I offer my congratulations to you on behalf of all Asgard."

"Glad you could make it, little buddy!" The small grey alien blinked at Jack.

A knock sounded at the door, then Siler poked his head in. "Um, General O'Neill?"

"Come on in, Siler, join the party!" Siler stepped into the room, followed by General Jacob Carter. "General Carter to see you, Sir."

Jacob crossed through the room to stand toe to toe with Jack, his deadpan face giving no hint to what was on his mind.

"Glad you could make it, Jacob."

"Why the hell didn't you do this years ago?"

Jack's jaw bounced off the floor. "Scuse me?!?"

"Oh, come one, Jack, this is me. I could tell the moment I met you that you had a thing for my daughter. Hell, damn near every man who meets her has a thing for her. But you..." He shook his head. "You've taken damn good care of her for the last eight years. I know you towed the line very carefully. And for that, you have my respect." He paused, smiling at last. "And I don't think I've seen two people who fit together so well since...well, since my wife died." He offered his hand to Jack, and then pulled him into a fierce, manly embrace. "Congratulations."

Jack was humbled by the man's words. As he was still trying to find words to express his appreciation, Teal'c arrived. The big Jaffa had a difficult time squeezing through to O'Neill. He somehow managed to find himself sandwiched between the Commander of the SGC and the Supreme Commander of the Asgard Fleet, and it wasn't a pretty sight.

"SG teams 2, 3, 9, and 20 are ready and waiting. There was a minor incident involving Technician Davis and a saber, however, the damage was minor."

"All right, men, looks like it's time to get this show on the road!" Slowly, everyone piled out of Jack's office.

"I'll see if Sam's ready," Jacob informed Jack before leaving. Jack and Daniel were the last ones in the room.

"So... you ready for this?"

"Truth? I'm suddenly very, very nervous."

"Why? You're not... having second thoughts-"

"No! Never! But...well, you know, every guy that's fallen for Carter has met a horrible, untimely end..."

Daniel rolled his eyes. "Well, maybe she really is cursed. Only true love will set her free."

"That's just...bad, Daniel."

Daniel suddenly frowned. "'Carter'? Jeeze, you're about to marry the woman, Jack!"

"Yeah, yeah. Old habits and other bad clichés." Jack took a deep breath, closed the door to his office, and walked with Daniel to the Gateroom.

She was ready-with ten minutes to spare!

She started pacing. She was ready to get this over with... more than ready, and the anticipation had her climbing the walls. Janet had left her alone with her nerves to make certain the bridesmaids, which included Cassandra, of course, as well as Lt. Hailey and a couple of the nurses from the SGC Infirmary, were ready. Last time Samantha had seen Cassie, she was still complaining about the suit she had to wear; she was the only bridesmaid not in the military, and therefore not in dress blues.

Sam wrapped her arms around herself, closed her eyes, and tried to imagine they were Jack's. She sighed, peeking at her watch. Eight minutes to go. Eight years to openly admit their feelings. Eight days to plan this crazy wedding. And now, eight minutes until they finally joined together as husband and wife. Eight years, eight days, and eight minutes.

A knock at the door rescued her from her strange reverie. When her father walked into the room, she broke into a beaming smile.

"Sammie..." He couldn't choke anymore out. He opened his arms to her, and she ran into them, hugging him fiercely. "Are you happy, sweetheart? Does he really make you happy?" He whispered close to her ear.

Sam pulled back, tears threatening to spill. "More than I dared dream. I love him, Dad. He loves me." She reached up to carefully brush away the tears. "He means everything to me. He believes in me. He's...I... God, I never thought it would be this hard!" She tried to laugh to keep from crying, but it came out a strange blend of both.

"I'm very happy for you, sweetheart. I'm happy for both of you. And don't ever tell him I said this, but I think you've found yourself a damned good man. I can't imagine a better match for you."

She laughed as she pulled him close again. "I love you, Dad."

"Love you, too, Samantha." He stepped back, and she took a second to appreciate how handsome her father looked in his General's regalia.

"Are you ready?"

"Are you kidding? I've **been** ready! Let's get this show on the road, for cryin' out loud!"

Jacob laughed out loud. "You've been hanging around Jack too long already!"

"Ya think?" She laughed with him as they finally made their way to the Gateroom.

They entered the Gateroom to the gentle swells of Pachelbel's Canon. Everyone stood, gasping, smiling, and even grinning at Samantha as she stood in the doorway for a moment. She gazed at the sea of faces, smiling at each friend and comrade. At last she and Jacob began their slow march down the aisle.

The moment Jack saw his bride, he was pretty sure his heart stopped. She was breathtaking, achingly beautiful. He was certain later that the only thing that had stopped him running to her and ravishing her right there, was Daniel's hand on his arm when he jerked forward a step.

As soon as their eyes met, Samantha felt a jolt of electricity coursing between her and Jack. She watched him swallow hard, his eyes dark and intense. She smiled even wider, baring her teeth and crinkling her nose, her face glowing brighter than the sun. Jack gasped, then finally smiled back, his love burning brightly in his eyes.

When they finally reached the end of the aisle, Jacob released her arm, offering it to Jack. "I give you my daughter, and my blessing." Jack and Sam only had eyes for each other as they turned to walk up the ramp.

Four SG teams charged with the duties of saber bearers lined up along either side of the ramp, facing the President and the alter, then each other, then the guests. Jack and Sam walked through in time with the rising swells of the music that filled the room, gazes still locked together. As the couple passed, the soldiers pivoted to face each other once again.

Every guest could feel the heat radiating from the love struck couple by the time they reached the top of the ramp. For a long moment, they stood there lost in each other. Their audience watched, captivated as they witnessed an entire conversation pass between them without a word spoken.

_I love you. _

_This is it! _

_It's about time! _

_You're telling me?! _

_Took us long enough. _

_Ya think? _

_Last chance to walk away. _

_Never. Love you. Always. _

_Love you. Always. _

For a moment, everyone in the room held their breath, nearly expecting the couple to throw themselves into each other's arms and begin making passionate love then and there, so intense was the silence between them.

President Hayes approached them.

"We have gathered here today to witness and celebrate the union between Brigadier General Jonathan "Jack" O'Neill and Lieutenant Colonel Samantha Carter as they join together in Holy Matrimony.

"It was only after I had been sworn into office that I became aware of the operations of the Stargate Command; I spent many sleepless nights my first few months in office reading through every mission report, every personnel file, every bit of information I could get my hands on about this amazing program. I was particularly fascinated and awed by the adventures of our flagship team, SG-1, led by these very individuals.

"In their years of service on the very frontiers of the universe, these two brave souls have faced, and survived, greater adversities, challenges, and enemies than most people on this planet will ever dream of. Through it all, they have performed their duties with the utmost dedication, devotion, and loyalty-to their planet, their country, their team, and above all, to each other."

The president paused for a moment. He nodded to maid of honor Janet, and best man Daniel, and they passed the rings to him.

"Jack and Samantha have chosen to write their own vows together," he announced.

They spoke in unison the words they had rehearsed until they were ingrained into their memories, the music continuing to underscore their voices.

_**"We are two souls bound together inextricably into one.**_

_**My heart is yours, your heart is mine.**_

_**Nothing can separate us-not time, not space, not even death. **_

_**Every step we take side by side, a leap of faith and trust. **_

_**Whatever fate throws at us, it is out destiny to face it together. **_

_**I give myself completely to you:**_

_**My best and my worst, **_

_**My darkness and my light. **_

_**I will serve with you. I will protect you. **_

_**I would die for you. I will live for you."**_

The President passed them the rings, which they simultaneously placed on one another's hands.

_**"Our love is infinite.**_

_**Our bond is eternal."**_

"With all the power vested in me by the People of The United States of America, I proudly pronounce you husband and wife. Ladies and gentlemen, and visiting alien dignitaries, it is my honor and privilege to present to you Mr. and Mrs. Jack O'Neill!" The audience broke out in cheers, and Jack was tearing back her veil before the President could utter his "You may kiss the bride."

Sam wrapped her arms tightly about his neck, smiling like a cat ready to pounce upon its prey. "My husband," she murmured.

"My wife," he growled as he brought his mouth crashing down on hers. He kissed her deeply and thoroughly, pulling her as close to him as he could; then, suddenly blessed with a flash of inspiration, he bent her back and gently dipped her. Her hands dug into his scalp as she kissed him back passionately, almost fiercely. He was dimly aware of various catcalls and hollering in the background as he slowly stood her upright again. At long last, they parted, breathless.

"Jack?"

"Yeah, sweetheart?"

"Um... have we done that before?"

He was saved from answering by the order to "Raise Sabers" bellowed out by Teal'c. He offered his arm to Sam, which she accepted with a gracious smile. They turned and walked down the ramp, passing gracefully beneath the traditional Arch of Sabers presented by their colleagues.

Storage Room 21-12 was the largest room on the base, and up until 24 hours ago had been packed full of equipment and a variety of goods acquired off world. Thanks to the careful and judicious use of every square millimeter of available space on the base, everything had been cleared out, and the room was now as lavishly dressed as the set of an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical.

The reception started with the galaxy's longest receiving line, which was crammed with varied and sundry military personnel and off world guests, both human and alien. After what felt like a lifetime of smiling and handshaking and "Congratulations!" and "Thank you's", Jack and Sam were finally free to join their friends and family in the celebration. The party was in full swing by then, of course, with Master Sergeant Siler playing Master of Ceremonies with enthusiastic dignity. He was very quick to spot the newlyweds moving onto the dance floor and made the due announcement with glee.

"Ladies and Gents, and various Non-gender-specific Aliens, Mr. & Mrs. O'Neill have requested the song "Couldn't Have said It Better" for their first dance together." The broad voice of Meat Loaf filled the room as the crowd cleared around the bride and groom. Jack pulled his bride into his arms in a quick, strong, fluid movement, and they began to move in time with the music.

His hands couldn't stay still, first roaming across her back, then up to her neck, and finally around to cup her face. His fingertips brushed across her lips, her cheeks, her eyes, her temples and forehead, then up through her hair. When her headdress interfered with his caresses, he pulled it off her head and tossed it out into the crowd. He tangled his fingers in her hair, pulling her face up to his. He dropped his head down to graze her lips with his own as they spun slowly around the room.

As the room at large cheered them on rather raucously, they moved apart, Jack stepping back and taking Samantha's hand as he spun her around and back into his arms again. She smiled brightly as she came crashing back into him, laughing softly as he dipped her back, swinging her round with a flourish. He pulled her back up and captured her lips for yet another kiss, much to the delight of the crowd.

They continued to dance around the room, their motion a study in the art of seductive movement. Those who knew them best were most surprised at the graceful steps flowing between the pair as they glided across the dance floor. It couldn't have been more beautiful had it been choreographed for Broadway; it was probably the sexiest and most erotic vision everyone present had ever beheld.

As they swirled round the room, Jack couldn't stop feasting his eyes and hands and mouth upon his exquisite bride. She didn't seem to mind too much; she was reciprocating quite enthusiastically, to his sheer delight. He gently pulled her face back so he could stare into her lovely eyes.

"God, I love your eyes." His voice was deep, husky, and so very sexy it sent shivers down her spine. She acknowledged his complement with a simple and wide-eyed kiss. A low growl rumbled in his chest as he pulled her hips tightly against his. "Think we could slip out now?"

She laughed, low and deep and tremendously sexy. "We've only been out here a few minutes, Jack. I think they'd notice."

"So?"

"Jack!" Her face was a picture of mock horror. He dipped his head down and kissed her senseless. When he finally let her up for air, her cheeks were flushed and bright, her eyes smoky and dark. "Your office?"

Jack grinned, grasped her hand, and led her off the dance floor and out of the reception hall.

As they watched their friends leave, Daniel turned to Janet with a slight frown. "They didn't even last a full five minutes!"

Janet laughed, her grin quite smug. "I believe you owe me, dear."

"Thought they'd have at least made it through their first dance together."

"You obviously have no idea what the music of Meat Loaf does to Sam."

"Well, I think I have some idea now." He offered a hand out to Janet. "Shall we see what it does to you?"

She laughed again as she took his hand. "Now you're really asking for trouble!"

Their absence had been so conspicuous that their return was greeted not only with cheers, but the Arch of Sabers leading them directly to the wedding cake. When they reached the table, Jack reached for his ceremonial instrument, only to find it missing, to his morbid disgrace. He looked sheepishly over to Sam, and then saw Daniel holding out his sword. Jack thanked him profusely, to Daniel's profound embarrassment.

Jack turned back to his wife, offering the sword to her, and together, they cut the first slice of cake. When they finished, Samantha brought the tip to her face, and very carefully, she licked a bit of frosting from it. Jack yanked it out of her hands and passed it back to Daniel while pulling her close and kissing her quite thoroughly.

While they were still necking like a couple of teenagers at prom, Janet slipped behind them and started serving the cake, setting theirs aside for them.

Sam pulled back after a long spell, staring adoringly into her husband's eyes.

"Cake?"

He smiled a wicked grin that made her go weak in the knees. He grabbed their generous slice and a single fork, and led her to their table. When they were comfortably seated, they took turns feeding each other bites of the moist chocolate cake. One of Jack's hands had slipped below the table and began rubbing the inside of Sam's thigh. She scooted a little closer as she offered him another bite. She slipped her free hand across his lap, zeroing in on her target immediately. Jack groaned, his hips grinding into her hand.

"Let them eat Cake!!" Daniel shouted, startling the lovebirds into wracking more than a couple of knees into the table. Jack cursed. Sam bit her lip. "So... you two have fun?"

Sam blushed, and Jack tossed a wadded up napkin at his head. "Did we miss anything?"

Daniel frowned thoughtfully. "Well, Major Davis seems to be developing a crush on Cassandra-"

"What?? He's gotta be what, a good ten, fifteen years older than her, for cryin out loud!" Sam laughed out loud. "What?" She looked at him pointedly. "That's different. We're old. Er. Older. She's just a kid!"

Sam shot him a dirty scowl. "She's a young woman, Jack, and a very mature and wise one, at that. Paul Davis is a good man, and I'm sure he will treat Cassie with all due respect."

"He's still too old for her," Jack grumbled. Sam shut him up with a kiss. Daniel continued with his "reception briefing"; he'd obviously enjoyed his fair share of champagne. "Teal'c led everyone in a rousing round of line dancing to the tune of "Whiskey for my Men, Beer for my Horses". Then General Hammond and President Hayes went head to head in a hoedown showdown. Thor led everyone in a conga line, during which Siler's nose got broken-he's fine, Janet patched him up real quick-and then, you guys are gonna love this! The Russians led everyone in an impressive rendition of the Time Warp!"

Jack choked on his cake and Sam burst out laughing. "Sound like a hell of a party!"

"Well, ya know, guys, it's only appropriate for the worlds biggest heroes-Wait! That's supposed to be in my speech!! He picked up a random spoon and tapped his glass; the room quickly filled with hundreds of little clinking sounds.

"All right, all right! It is that awful time, folks!"

Cheers of "Speech!! Speech!!" rang through the room loudly.

"All Right!!!" Daniel shouted at the top of his voice to quite the rowdy crowd. "First and foremost, I want to say... It's about damn time!!" He had to stop again as all of the guests voiced their hearty agreement with his opening statements. "Seriously, you two. It's about time. I've had the dubious honor of working with these two for a long time, and the equally dubious pleasure of watching them tap dance around each other, never daring to just come on out and admit what was so obvious to all of us. Damned Air Force regulations!" Again, he had to pause for the vigorous response.

"But they are nothing if not consummate professionals, and somehow, they managed to tow the line for eight long years. And apparently, fate got tired of waiting for them to get it through their thick skulls, and decided to go to drastic measures to drag things out in the open. For a moment that was all too brief, they were blessed by the entrance into their lives the presence of a young girl. A child of their creation. Through Grace, they finally fell headlong into each other's arms, right where they've belonged all along. And despite the pain of losing her as abruptly as they had found her, Jack and Sam have finally come together completely, openly, even whole-heartedly. And I daresay no man or God could ever tear them asunder."

His heart-felt speech was answered with a few soft "Amen's" as glasses clinked together. "To Jack and Sam."

Sam stood up and hugged Daniel tightly, tears flowing unabashedly down her cheeks. As he pulled back, he brushed them away with questions in his eyes. "Hey, it's my wedding day! I'm entitled to a few tears! And that was absolutely beautiful, Daniel. Thank you." She pulled him close to hug him once more, making him blush brightly.

Jack stood up and offered his hand to Daniel. They shook hands, each them now with an arm around Sam. "Thank you, Daniel." Jack's voice was gruff, full of too many emotions.

Jacob Carter approached the trio. They moved apart as Jacob tipped his glass towards them. The room hushed.

"My turn." He spoke with grave authority. He extended a hand out to Samantha, pulling her close to him as she clasped him firmly. "Sweetheart. You look amazing. You remind me so much of your mother right now." Sam swallowed hard as the tears started streaming down her cheeks.

"I'm proud of you, Sammie. I always have been. Never any good at telling you, but I felt it. You always thought I called you Sam because I wished you had been a boy. You couldn't have been more wrong, though. I love having a daughter. I just... didn't have any idea what to do with one. So I... improvised. And I must say, you turned out a damned fine woman. To tell you the truth, you amaze me."

He turned to Jack. "And you, come here!" He playfully jerked Jack over by the scruff of his neck, to the amused chuckles of the wedding guests. "You've been watching her back pretty well for the last several years. I expect you to do even better now!" He paused for a few more chuckles. "There aren't very many people on this planet who could do what you've done for the past eight years and stay safe, and sane, and alive. You've managed to do all that and pull more than a few miracles out of your ass. I've seen you out there first hand, and I have to say now, you're a damned good man, Jack O'Neill. I am proud to have you for a son-in-law."

He lifted his glass to Jack and Sam. "Here's to all the happiness you can grab. You've earned it!"

A loud "Here, Here!!" rang through the room as everyone toasted the couple. Sam hugged her father fiercely, trying to wipe the tears from her face.

Siler boomed back in over the PA system, announcing that it was the perfect time for the father of the bride to dance with his lovely daughter. The pair moved out to the dance floor and waltzed around the room to the beautiful rhythms of "Daughters", the voice of John Mayer soft and soothing. Sam's face was glowing, her smile melting her father's heart. "I don't think I've ever seen you so happy, Sam."

"I don't think I've ever been so happy. It's kind of scary." Jacob hugged her tightly as they danced around the room.

After a couple of turns, they were interrupted by a certain General Hammond, eager to share a dance with his honorary niece. As he watched his bride enchanting the socks off their former CO, Jack caught a glimpse of a certain Major dancing with Cassandra. He strolled over to them and very politely cut in, stealing Cassie away to waltz her across the floor. They just happened to bump into Sam, and he quickly passed Cassie over to the General as he pulled his bride into his arms. They twirled around the room artfully. Sam laughed softly in his ear.

"I saw what you did to Cassie!"

"What? I just wanted to dance with the young lady!"

"Just long enough to pawn her off onto General Hammond, so you could dance with me!"

"Are you complaining?"

"No, but I'm sure Cassie will be!"

Jack laughed with her before pulling her close for a kiss. "She'll get over it!"

"Don't look now, but she's already making a beeline back to Davis. I hope he knows what he's getting himself in for."

"I'll make sure he does..."

"Doesn't look like you'll need to worry too much... Teal'c is on his way over there." When Jack's grin looked a little too self-satisfied, Sam had to ask. "What did you say to him?"

"Nothing." A beat. A look. "Nothing much." Another look. "Just asked him to keep and eye on Cass. That's all!" Before she could fire another look at him, he swept her into a breathtaking kiss, spinning her around the room with dizzying grace.

The music ended and they returned to their table. Jack offered her a fresh glass of champagne. He threw another wink at his blushing bride as he tapped his glass. As the room dropped silent, Jack spoke, his voice rich and warm.

"I thought this day would never come. I have loved you from afar for so long... but I never dared allow myself to dream... this. I think I must be the luckiest man in the universe-the most amazing woman in the world is my wife."

Someone gasped, another sniffled. Daniel blew his nose rather loudly.

"Jack... God, it's taken me eight years just to finally feel comfortable addressing you by your first name! I was always so careful, so cautious, so very aware of that invisible line we were dancing around. I never dared let my guard slip, not even for a moment... not even a private moment. I... buried everything so deeply, just so I could function, do my job, do my duty. And I did it all so well... too well. When it finally came exploding to the surface...you blew me away. Suddenly I can't believe I waited so long, that we denied ourselves... all of this... for so many years. We wasted so much time, Jack. We can't ever make that mistake again. Every moment is precious. Grace showed us that. I thank God for that, for her. And I thank God for you, Jack. You mean everything to me."

She raised her glass to her husband, their arms intertwined, and they sipped their champagne. They set their glasses down with their free hands, their arms still entwined as they pulled one another in for the kiss to end all kisses. The world stopped spinning, the sun stopped shining, time came to a grinding halt. The universe consisted of one man and one woman; two courageous and adventurous souls fusing into one glorious and graceful spirit.

It was once again Daniel's loud nostrils, now sounding rather like a goose honking, that disrupted their intimate embrace. This was followed promptly by Siler announcing that is was now time for the garter and bouquet tossing traditions. Jack led Sam to an empty chair and propped one of her feet on his knee as he knelt in front of her. He slowly slipped her dress up, to the whistles and cheers of all the men in the room. Her face turned hot and pink as his fingers trailed slowly up her leg to retrieve her garter, then slowly slid it down and off. He reached back up to her raised hem, his fingers slipping a little too far underneath just before he pulled the skirt back down into place. Sam gasped audibly; Jack just smirked as he stood up.

His back was already to the crowd of single men anxiously awaiting him. He flicked the garter over his shoulder and it zinged straight toward Teal'c's face. He reached out and grabbed it with lightning quick reflexes. As countless disappointed bachelors slapped him across the back in congratulations, he turned to Daniel with one eyebrow arched dangerously high. Daniel opened his mouth, frowned, closed it again, looked at the garter, winced, turned around, and walked away without a word.

As Sam stood up, Janet passed her the bouquet. Sam hugged her friend, then turned to her husband. He wrapped his arm around her waist and led her out of the reception hall and down the corridors, back to the Gateroom. They were closely followed by the noisy happy guests, rice Jack was certain he'd sent out a memo forbidding rained down on the newlyweds as they drove down the halls.

When they reached the ramp, the technician in the control room announced the commencement of the dialing sequence. In a few minutes, they would be traveling through the Stargate to their honeymoon destination, a certain planet Jack remembered that had beaches that went on for miles.

As the last of the crowd gathered in the room, Janet yelled for all of the eligible women to move to the front. It was rather impressive how much volume the petite woman was capable of. After several minutes, all the ladies had squeezed and shoved their way to the front, and Sam turned around, counted aloud to three and tossed the bouquet high in the air. It sailed slowly through the air to land gracefully in Janet's outstretched arms. As the ladies moved back into the crowd, Jack and Sam said their last goodbyes. The technician announced that the final chevron was engaged, and everyone moved back a bit as the Gate swooshed to life.

The couple began walking up the ramp backwards, waving and shouting and grinning as they gravitated together. When they reached the top, they turned to face each other at last.

"Think they got everything ready?"

"Oh, for crying out loud!! Let's just go already, Jack!" She almost shoved him through the wormhole this time. He laughed as he scooped her up into his arms.

"Love you, wife."

"Love you, husband." He brought his lips down to hers, their gazes locked together. The cheering behind them faded into a dull roar. All they could hear was their hearts beating in unison. All they could see were the twin orbs that were mirroring their souls. All they could taste was the sweet essence of their love. All they could feel were their souls mingling together. He stepped over the threshold and across the event horizon of the Stargate; he never stopped kissing her.


End file.
